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

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. press — to push
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. press — newspapers
  5. drill — a practice
  6. march — the month
  7. drill — the tool
  8. current — happening now
  9. press — a publisher
  10. race — a contest
  11. plane — a tool
  12. race — humankind
  13. chest — a box
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. march — the month
  16. drill — army training
  17. rock — a stone
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chest — of your body
  20. race — the arms race
  21. current — electric
  22. march — music
  23. current — of water
  24. plane — in geometry

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