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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 120 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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. hand — in cards
  3. pitch — completely
  4. press — to push
  5. wound — an injury
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. pop — to visit
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. row — a line
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. march — the month
  15. wound — an injury
  16. hand — help
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. press — newspapers
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. pop — soda
  21. march — music
  22. press — a publisher
  23. row — to paddle
  24. pop — music

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