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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 ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. pitch — completely
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. press — to push
  6. stem — to come from
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. race — a contest
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. race — humankind
  15. press — newspapers
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. race — the arms race
  18. press — a publisher
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — an illness
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. coach — a trainer

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