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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: press · stand · fan · rule · bat · face · object · squash

  1. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. press — a publisher
  4. face — to point toward
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. stand — to bear
  7. object — to protest
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. object — an aim
  10. squash — to crush
  11. press — to push
  12. squash — the sport
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. face — to confront
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. rule — government
  17. rule — a law
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. press — newspapers
  22. bat — the animal
  23. face — part of the head
  24. rule — to rule out

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