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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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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 · wound · content · pit · wind · charge · perch · sharp

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. press — a publisher
  3. sharp — clever
  4. wound — an injury
  5. content — happy
  6. perch — the fish
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. charge — a price
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. content — the amount
  11. pit — in a race
  12. press — to push
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. pit — a hole
  15. charge — electricity
  16. charge — in control
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. press — newspapers
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wound — an injury
  24. perch — for a bird

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