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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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468
Word bank
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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 meat?
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. capital — money
  4. pit — in a race
  5. season — of the year
  6. press — newspapers
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bass — low music
  9. pit — a hole
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. press — to push
  12. bass — the fish
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. capital — a city
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. wake — a trail
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. wound — an injury
  22. press — a publisher
  23. season — in sport
  24. racket — for tennis

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