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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: chair · wave · deal · snap · cold · rest · mug · press

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. snap — to click
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. press — to push
  6. mug — a face
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. cold — an illness
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. rest — what's left
  13. press — a publisher
  14. rest — what's left
  15. deal — to handle
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. press — newspapers
  18. rest — a break
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — not warm
  21. mug — a cup
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. chair — a leader

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