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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. press — a publisher
  3. spring — of water
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. field — for sport
  6. field — farmland
  7. scale — size or range
  8. press — newspapers
  9. capital — a city
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. spring — the season
  16. spring — a coil
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. scale — in music
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. capital — money
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. pitch — completely
  23. field — a subject
  24. mouse — the animal

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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