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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. ball — a dance
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. pitch — completely
  8. wound — an injury
  9. degree — from a university
  10. wound — an injury
  11. degree — temperature
  12. press — a publisher
  13. press — newspapers
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. press — to push
  16. ball — a great time
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. wound — past of 'wind'

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