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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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. wind — moving air
  3. fork — in a road
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. lie — to recline
  8. present — there
  9. file — a tool
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. press — to push
  12. kid — to tease
  13. kid — child
  14. pitch — completely
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. file — a line of people
  17. wind — moving air
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. press — a publisher
  21. present — the time now
  22. press — newspapers
  23. file — a document
  24. present — a gift

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