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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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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 button?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. press — a publisher
  3. fork — in a road
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. root — the cause
  6. bass — low music
  7. net — in sport
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. root — of a plant
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. root — of a word
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. rash — hasty
  15. rash — a series
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. net — for catching
  19. net — after costs
  20. pit — a hole
  21. press — newspapers
  22. pit — in a race
  23. sharp — clever
  24. bass — the fish

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