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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. bass — the fish
  3. degree — temperature
  4. land — to come down
  5. press — to push
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. press — a publisher
  9. bass — low music
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. land — ground
  15. pitch — completely
  16. cap — of ice
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. degree — from a university
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. degree — an amount
  21. press — newspapers
  22. land — a country
  23. sharp — clever
  24. cap — a hat

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