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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: press · patient · cold · leaves · present · cell · roll · fine

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. cell — in biology
  3. present — a gift
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. press — a publisher
  6. cold — not warm
  7. press — to push
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. roll — a cake
  10. roll — a list
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. fine — all right
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. fine — high quality
  17. cell — a phone
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cold — an illness
  20. present — the time now
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. present — there
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. press — newspapers

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