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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. rock — music
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. present — the time now
  5. land — ground
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — the season
  8. last — to go on
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. press — to push
  11. fork — in a road
  12. land — a country
  13. present — there
  14. spring — of water
  15. land — to come down
  16. last — finally
  17. scale — in music
  18. press — newspapers
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. press — a publisher
  22. rock — a stone
  23. present — a gift
  24. last — final

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