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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. press — a publisher
  4. game — wild animals
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. drill — the tool
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. press — newspapers
  15. prune — to trim
  16. march — the month
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. march — music
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. prune — to trim
  21. game — a match
  22. press — to push
  23. drill — army training
  24. march — the month

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