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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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. shower — rain
  3. press — a publisher
  4. march — the month
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bark — to shout
  9. wind — moving air
  10. present — there
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. press — to push
  13. shower — to wash
  14. press — newspapers
  15. present — a gift
  16. march — music
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. present — the time now
  20. chair — a leader
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. march — the month

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