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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. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. cold — an illness
  4. press — to push
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. game — a match
  7. march — the month
  8. chip — to eat
  9. mug — a cup
  10. file — a tool
  11. sharp — clever
  12. march — the month
  13. mug — to rob
  14. file — a document
  15. file — a line of people
  16. chip — for betting
  17. march — music
  18. game — wild animals
  19. press — a publisher
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. mug — a face
  22. cold — not warm
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. sharp — exactly

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