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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. field — a subject
  3. press — a publisher
  4. suit — in cards
  5. file — a tool
  6. press — newspapers
  7. field — farmland
  8. perch — the fish
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. march — the month
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. suit — clothes
  13. kick — in football
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. field — for sport
  17. march — the month
  18. suit — to fit
  19. march — music
  20. kid — child
  21. press — to push
  22. file — a document
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. kid — to tease

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