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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. race — a contest
  3. pit — a hole
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. press — a publisher
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. press — to push
  9. scale — in music
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. last — final
  12. staff — a stick
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. pit — in a race
  15. staff — employees
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. press — newspapers
  19. staff — employees
  20. race — the arms race
  21. last — finally
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. race — humankind
  24. scale — size or range

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