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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. game — wild animals
  3. press — newspapers
  4. press — to push
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. present — a gift
  7. swing — in golf
  8. game — a match
  9. swing — to play on
  10. present — the time now
  11. march — the month
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. degree — from a university
  14. present — there
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. march — the month
  17. clip — for paper
  18. march — music
  19. degree — temperature
  20. clip — a video
  21. press — a publisher
  22. clip — to cut
  23. swing — music
  24. game — a kind of play

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