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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. press — to push
  4. pop — soda
  5. mate — to breed
  6. field — for sport
  7. mate — a partner
  8. field — a subject
  9. file — a tool
  10. file — a document
  11. pitch — completely
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. press — a publisher
  15. mate — a friend
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. file — a line of people
  18. swing — in golf
  19. pop — to visit
  20. swing — music
  21. swing — to play on
  22. press — newspapers
  23. pop — music
  24. field — farmland

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