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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.

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: hand · ground · hide · saw · club · file · press · bowl

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. club — for dancing
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. club — a group
  5. press — newspapers
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. saw — the tool
  9. ground — a position
  10. file — a line of people
  11. ground — crushed
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. hand — in cards
  15. press — a publisher
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. saw — the tool
  18. ground — the earth
  19. file — a tool
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. hand — help
  22. file — a document
  23. club — for golf
  24. press — to push

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