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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. row — to paddle
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. race — a contest
  7. swing — to play on
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. press — to push
  10. pitch — completely
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. row — a line
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. swing — in golf
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. kick — in football
  17. race — the arms race
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. press — newspapers
  20. press — a publisher
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. race — humankind
  23. swing — music
  24. mouse — the animal

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