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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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468
Word bank
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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. march — the month
  4. sharp — clever
  5. season — in sport
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. press — newspapers
  10. hand — help
  11. press — a publisher
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. press — to push
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. degree — an amount
  16. season — of the year
  17. degree — temperature
  18. degree — from a university
  19. march — music
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. hand — in cards
  22. march — the month
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. racket — for tennis

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