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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. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. game — a match
  3. bank — for money
  4. press — to push
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. rash — a series
  7. cell — a phone
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. last — to go on
  10. last — final
  11. perch — the fish
  12. game — wild animals
  13. bank — for money
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. rash — hasty
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. last — finally
  18. field — a subject
  19. press — a publisher
  20. cell — in biology
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. field — for sport
  23. field — farmland
  24. bank — of a river

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