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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. press — a publisher
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. tear — to rip
  7. press — to push
  8. tear — from crying
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. press — newspapers
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — the arms race
  16. pitch — completely
  17. race — humankind
  18. sharp — clever

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