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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: file · cell · press · foot · swing · date · present · wake

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. file — a tool
  4. wake — a trail
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. swing — to play on
  7. date — the fruit
  8. swing — music
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. swing — in golf
  12. present — the time now
  13. press — newspapers
  14. present — a gift
  15. press — to push
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. cell — in biology
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. file — a document
  21. file — a line of people
  22. present — there
  23. press — a publisher
  24. cell — a phone

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