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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 120 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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. present — a gift
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. file — a tool
  5. capital — a city
  6. capital — money
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. tear — to rip
  9. press — a publisher
  10. snap — to click
  11. present — there
  12. file — a document
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. press — newspapers
  15. file — a line of people
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. press — to push
  18. present — the time now
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — from crying
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. pit — a hole
  24. pit — in a race

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