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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 120 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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. last — finally
  3. pit — a hole
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cell — a phone
  6. suit — in cards
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. last — to go on
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. suit — to fit
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. cold — not warm
  13. last — final
  14. press — newspapers
  15. pitch — completely
  16. press — to push
  17. capital — money
  18. pit — in a race
  19. capital — a city
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. press — a publisher
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. suit — clothes

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