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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. fork — in a road
  6. prune — to trim
  7. rule — government
  8. press — newspapers
  9. rule — a law
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. capital — money
  12. press — a publisher
  13. capital — a city
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. tube — the underground
  17. prune — to trim
  18. pitch — completely
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — a break
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. tube — a container

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