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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. file — a tool
  4. file — a line of people
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. track — a path
  7. swing — to play on
  8. mark — a grade
  9. track — a song
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. file — a document
  12. sharp — clever
  13. swing — music
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. press — to push
  16. track — to keep track
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. game — wild animals
  20. press — newspapers
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. mark — a trace
  23. game — a match
  24. swing — in golf

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