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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. saw — the tool
  3. march — the month
  4. pop — to visit
  5. pop — soda
  6. march — music
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. press — to push
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. scale — in music
  15. pitch — completely
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. march — the month
  18. press — a publisher
  19. scale — size or range
  20. saw — the tool
  21. press — newspapers
  22. pop — music
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. leaves — of a tree

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