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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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. ball — a great time
  4. press — a publisher
  5. hand — in cards
  6. present — a gift
  7. press — newspapers
  8. press — to push
  9. present — there
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. stand — to bear
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. file — a tool
  14. hand — help
  15. present — the time now
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. pitch — completely
  19. pit — in a race
  20. file — a document
  21. pit — a hole
  22. file — a line of people
  23. ball — a dance
  24. hand — part of the body

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