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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. cold — an illness
  5. press — a publisher
  6. press — newspapers
  7. rest — a break
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. current — of water
  10. spell — letters
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. spell — magic
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. cold — not warm
  16. spell — a short time
  17. press — to push
  18. current — electric
  19. rest — what's left
  20. pitch — completely
  21. plane — a tool
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. rest — what's left
  24. bowl — a dish

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