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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. mate — to breed
  3. mate — a partner
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. root — of a word
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. mark — a trace
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. press — a publisher
  11. root — the cause
  12. stand — to bear
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. prune — to trim
  15. mark — a grade
  16. press — to push
  17. mate — a friend
  18. bat — the animal
  19. prune — to trim
  20. press — newspapers
  21. game — a match
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. root — of a plant
  24. bat — in an idiom

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