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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: chip · cold · drill · root · row · press · perch · net

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. chip — to eat
  3. press — newspapers
  4. cold — not warm
  5. net — after costs
  6. drill — army training
  7. row — to paddle
  8. drill — the tool
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. perch — the fish
  13. root — the cause
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. root — of a word
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. net — in sport
  18. row — a line
  19. root — of a plant
  20. net — for catching
  21. press — to push
  22. cold — an illness
  23. drill — a practice
  24. chip — for betting

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