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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 ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. press — to push
  6. degree — temperature
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. pound — a weight
  9. rule — a law
  10. bear — the animal
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. last — to go on
  14. last — final
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. last — finally
  18. bear — the animal
  19. press — newspapers
  20. rule — government
  21. degree — from a university
  22. degree — an amount
  23. press — a publisher
  24. coach — a trainer

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