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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. rule — a law
  3. cell — in biology
  4. current — electric
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. cell — a phone
  9. rule — government
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. press — to push
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. press — a publisher
  14. pitch — completely
  15. club — for golf
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. club — for dancing
  18. current — of water
  19. press — newspapers
  20. fine — high quality
  21. club — a group
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. current — happening now
  24. sharp — clever

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