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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 116 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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. drill — army training
  3. season — of the year
  4. content — happy
  5. pitch — completely
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. press — to push
  9. march — the month
  10. march — music
  11. content — the amount
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. rest — a break
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. march — the month
  16. rest — what's left
  17. press — newspapers
  18. press — a publisher
  19. rest — what's left
  20. drill — the tool
  21. season — in sport
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. drill — a practice
  24. season — to add flavour

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