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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. pitch — completely
  4. toast — bread
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. staff — employees
  7. cell — a phone
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. staff — a stick
  12. saw — the tool
  13. staff — employees
  14. saw — the tool
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. press — a publisher
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. press — to push
  21. bat — the animal
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. cell — in biology
  24. press — newspapers

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