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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. firm — a company
  3. press — a publisher
  4. press — to push
  5. firm — decided
  6. tear — from crying
  7. present — the time now
  8. present — a gift
  9. firm — steady
  10. charge — in control
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. spring — of water
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. charge — electricity
  15. spring — a coil
  16. tear — to rip
  17. march — music
  18. charge — a price
  19. present — there
  20. march — the month
  21. press — newspapers
  22. spring — the season
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. tear — from crying

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