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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: bowl · root · game · mate · firm · chest · cold · press

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cold — an illness
  3. chest — a box
  4. mate — to breed
  5. chest — of your body
  6. firm — decided
  7. press — newspapers
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. root — the cause
  10. mate — a partner
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. press — to push
  13. game — wild animals
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. firm — steady
  16. game — a match
  17. press — a publisher
  18. root — of a word
  19. chest — of your body
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. root — of a plant
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. mate — a friend
  24. firm — a company

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