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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. march — music
  3. file — a document
  4. file — a tool
  5. current — of water
  6. press — to push
  7. press — a publisher
  8. chair — a leader
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. current — happening now
  11. march — the month
  12. root — of a word
  13. march — the month
  14. root — the cause
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. ball — a great time
  17. press — newspapers
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. file — a line of people
  20. current — electric
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. root — of a plant
  24. ball — a dance

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