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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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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: press · patient · object · mug · toast · bowl · cell · stick

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. cell — a phone
  3. press — a publisher
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. mug — a face
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. object — an aim
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. press — newspapers
  15. mug — to rob
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. object — to protest
  18. press — to push
  19. cell — in biology
  20. mug — a cup
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. toast — bread
  24. object — a thing

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