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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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: cold · mouse · press · fan · plane · chair · stick · ground

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. press — a publisher
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. ground — a position
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. press — to push
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. cold — not warm
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. plane — a tool
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — the earth
  19. press — newspapers
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. cold — an illness

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