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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: bowl · press · wind · cell · cabinet · file · squash · stem

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. file — a tool
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stem — to come from
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. squash — to crush
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. file — a document
  12. press — a publisher
  13. squash — the sport
  14. cell — a phone
  15. wind — moving air
  16. file — a line of people
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. press — to push
  19. cell — in biology
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. press — newspapers
  24. cabinet — ministers

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