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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. mate — a friend
  3. track — a path
  4. pit — in a race
  5. press — a publisher
  6. track — to keep track
  7. last — final
  8. bank — for money
  9. mate — to breed
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. mate — a partner
  12. press — newspapers
  13. content — the amount
  14. pit — a hole
  15. bank — of a river
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. content — happy
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. last — finally
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. last — to go on
  22. bank — for money
  23. track — a song
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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