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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. press — to push
  3. field — a subject
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. march — the month
  7. field — farmland
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. march — music
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. march — the month
  14. bound — tied together
  15. press — newspapers
  16. bound — certain
  17. fall — to drop
  18. press — a publisher
  19. fall — to drop
  20. bound — obliged
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. field — for sport
  23. fall — the season
  24. pitcher — a jug

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