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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. net — in sport
  3. track — a song
  4. bear — the animal
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. track — to keep track
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. track — a path
  9. drill — a practice
  10. bear — the animal
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. net — after costs
  13. branch — a division
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. net — for catching
  17. drill — the tool
  18. chair — a leader
  19. drill — army training
  20. press — a publisher
  21. press — newspapers
  22. season — of the year
  23. press — to push
  24. chair — a professorship

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