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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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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. rule — government
  4. net — for catching
  5. root — of a word
  6. race — a contest
  7. rule — a law
  8. race — the arms race
  9. net — after costs
  10. press — a publisher
  11. sharp — clever
  12. race — humankind
  13. press — newspapers
  14. root — of a plant
  15. root — the cause
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. press — to push

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