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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. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. press — a publisher
  3. bass — low music
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. last — to go on
  7. press — to push
  8. last — final
  9. pit — a hole
  10. perch — the fish
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bore — to tire
  13. last — finally
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. branch — a division
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bore — to drill
  21. bass — the fish
  22. pit — in a race
  23. press — newspapers
  24. perch — for a bird

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