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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 ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. game — wild animals
  3. press — to push
  4. march — the month
  5. swing — music
  6. branch — a division
  7. swing — to play on
  8. saw — the tool
  9. spell — magic
  10. march — music
  11. game — a match
  12. press — a publisher
  13. field — a subject
  14. field — farmland
  15. spell — a short time
  16. press — newspapers
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. march — the month
  20. saw — the tool
  21. spell — letters
  22. field — for sport
  23. swing — in golf
  24. branch — of a tree

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