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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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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: cap · stick · patient · chest · wave · fan · squash · press

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. press — a publisher
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. chest — of your body
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. chest — of your body
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. press — newspapers
  11. press — to push
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. squash — to crush
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. chest — a box
  17. cap — of ice
  18. cap — a hat
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. cap — a lid
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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