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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: ground · craft · kid · season · cell · press · mark · file

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. press — to push
  3. ground — a position
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. file — a line of people
  6. ground — the earth
  7. kid — to tease
  8. file — a document
  9. cell — a phone
  10. press — newspapers
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. file — a tool
  13. season — of the year
  14. kid — child
  15. mark — a trace
  16. craft — a skill
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. ground — crushed
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. season — in sport
  21. press — a publisher
  22. craft — boats
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. mark — a grade

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