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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cell · pit · staff · rash · fall · bound · press · row

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. fall — the season
  3. fall — to drop
  4. pit — a hole
  5. press — to push
  6. press — a publisher
  7. row — to paddle
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. staff — employees
  10. bound — certain
  11. cell — a phone
  12. cell — in biology
  13. staff — employees
  14. press — newspapers
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. fall — to drop
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. pit — in a race
  19. rash — a series
  20. bound — obliged
  21. bound — tied together
  22. row — a line
  23. staff — a stick
  24. rash — hasty

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