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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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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: chip · band · sharp · press · spell · cold · face · mark

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. press — a publisher
  5. face — to confront
  6. face — to point toward
  7. face — part of the head
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. spell — letters
  10. spell — magic
  11. press — newspapers
  12. chip — for betting
  13. mark — a grade
  14. cold — an illness
  15. spell — a short time
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. band — a music group
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. chip — to eat
  20. sharp — clever
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. press — to push
  23. band — a ring
  24. mark — a trace

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