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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. press — to push
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. press — a publisher
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. spring — the season
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. land — ground
  11. land — to come down
  12. bass — the fish
  13. spring — of water
  14. pitch — completely
  15. sharp — clever
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. press — newspapers
  19. tube — the underground
  20. tube — a container
  21. bass — low music
  22. rush — hurry
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. spring — a coil

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