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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 120 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: safe · ground · wake · mine · press · degree · squash · charge

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. ground — a position
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. press — a publisher
  6. squash — to crush
  7. degree — an amount
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. ground — the earth
  11. press — to push
  12. mine — for digging
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. charge — electricity
  15. degree — temperature
  16. charge — a price
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. ground — crushed
  19. wake — a trail
  20. squash — the sport
  21. degree — from a university
  22. charge — in control
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. press — newspapers

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