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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 116 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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. drill — army training
  5. press — to push
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. press — a publisher
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. sharp — clever
  14. fine — high quality
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. fine — all right
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. drill — a practice
  21. pass — a permit
  22. press — newspapers
  23. drill — the tool
  24. pass — to succeed

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