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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. chest — of your body
  6. press — to push
  7. pit — in a race
  8. bark — to shout
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. ball — a dance
  11. press — newspapers
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. chip — for betting
  15. pitch — completely
  16. pit — a hole
  17. chest — a box
  18. rock — music
  19. rock — a stone
  20. ball — a great time
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. chest — of your body
  24. chip — to eat

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