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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: file · chair · cue · present · saw · rest · season · press

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. file — a line of people
  3. rest — what's left
  4. chair — a leader
  5. cue — a hint
  6. file — a tool
  7. present — the time now
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. rest — a break
  10. season — in sport
  11. present — a gift
  12. press — to push
  13. cue — for pool
  14. file — a document
  15. saw — the tool
  16. season — of the year
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. cue — a signal
  19. present — there
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. press — newspapers
  22. saw — the tool
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. rest — what's left

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