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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. press — a publisher
  3. degree — an amount
  4. band — a ring
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. pit — in a race
  10. pit — a hole
  11. press — to push
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. bat — the animal
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. band — a music group
  19. degree — temperature
  20. fine — high quality
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. degree — from a university
  23. fine — all right
  24. press — newspapers

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