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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. present — a gift
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. row — a line
  6. press — newspapers
  7. press — to push
  8. pit — in a race
  9. present — there
  10. game — a match
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. press — a publisher
  14. last — finally
  15. game — wild animals
  16. row — to paddle
  17. last — final
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. pit — a hole
  21. present — the time now
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. last — to go on

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