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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. net — for catching
  4. press — a publisher
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. ball — a dance
  7. ball — a great time
  8. last — final
  9. net — after costs
  10. file — a line of people
  11. march — music
  12. file — a document
  13. net — in sport
  14. last — to go on
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. march — the month
  17. march — the month
  18. press — to push
  19. prune — to trim
  20. press — newspapers
  21. file — a tool
  22. prune — to trim
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. lie — to recline

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