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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 120 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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. press — a publisher
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. press — to push
  6. pitch — completely
  7. race — humankind
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. game — a match
  10. face — to point toward
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. game — wild animals
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. race — the arms race
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. race — a contest
  18. ground — the earth
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. face — part of the head
  21. ground — a position
  22. face — to confront
  23. ground — crushed
  24. press — newspapers

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