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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. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. ground — crushed
  3. cold — an illness
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. present — there
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. cold — not warm
  10. pitch — completely
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. ground — a position
  15. saw — the tool
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. fork — in a road
  18. press — a publisher
  19. saw — the tool
  20. press — to push
  21. present — a gift
  22. present — the time now
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. ground — the earth

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