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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 116 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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. press — a publisher
  4. content — the amount
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — farmland
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. content — happy
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. press — to push
  11. rule — a law
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. plane — a tool
  15. bark — to shout
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. press — newspapers
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. rule — government
  20. bass — low music
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. field — for sport

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