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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. press — to push
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. drill — a practice
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. plane — a tool
  9. chair — a leader
  10. drill — the tool
  11. pit — in a race
  12. press — a publisher
  13. charge — a price
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. charge — electricity
  18. date — the fruit
  19. pit — a hole
  20. press — newspapers
  21. charge — in control
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. drill — army training

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