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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. march — music
  3. swing — to play on
  4. toast — bread
  5. press — a publisher
  6. swing — music
  7. press — newspapers
  8. current — of water
  9. pitch — completely
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. wound — an injury
  13. file — a document
  14. current — electric
  15. wound — an injury
  16. file — a tool
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. march — the month
  19. file — a line of people
  20. march — the month
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. press — to push
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. swing — in golf

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