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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: hand · press · content · lash · row · object · wound · sharp

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. press — a publisher
  3. sharp — clever
  4. object — a thing
  5. row — to paddle
  6. hand — in cards
  7. press — to push
  8. wound — an injury
  9. object — to protest
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. content — the amount
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. content — happy
  15. hand — help
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. press — newspapers
  22. row — a line
  23. object — an aim
  24. wound — an injury

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com