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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. race — the arms race
  3. race — a contest
  4. press — newspapers
  5. race — humankind
  6. mate — a friend
  7. press — a publisher
  8. mate — to breed
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. file — a tool
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. current — electric
  14. capital — money
  15. current — of water
  16. current — happening now
  17. file — a line of people
  18. mate — a partner
  19. root — the cause
  20. file — a document
  21. root — of a word
  22. capital — a city
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. root — of a plant

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