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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. press — to push
  3. last — to go on
  4. game — a match
  5. capital — money
  6. last — finally
  7. press — a publisher
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. drill — army training
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. kick — in football
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. capital — a city
  20. last — final
  21. drill — a practice
  22. press — newspapers
  23. drill — the tool
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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