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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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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: perch · pound · press · rush · mate · sharp · last · cabinet

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. mate — to breed
  4. pound — a weight
  5. rush — hurry
  6. perch — the fish
  7. mate — a partner
  8. sharp — clever
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. last — to go on
  13. last — finally
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. mate — a friend
  16. press — newspapers
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. press — to push
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. last — final

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