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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. race — humankind
  3. fork — in a road
  4. ground — a position
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. ground — the earth
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. pitch — completely
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. press — newspapers
  17. press — a publisher
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. race — a contest
  21. ground — crushed
  22. race — the arms race
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. wound — an injury

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