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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. net — for catching
  3. press — to push
  4. bass — low music
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. net — after costs
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. net — in sport
  11. bass — the fish
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. press — newspapers
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. kick — in football
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. date — the fruit
  20. press — a publisher
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. pitch — completely
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. fork — in a road

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