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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. track — a song
  4. press — a publisher
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. march — the month
  8. mark — a trace
  9. hand — help
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. race — the arms race
  12. mark — a grade
  13. track — to keep track
  14. ball — a dance
  15. hand — in cards
  16. ball — a great time
  17. track — a path
  18. press — newspapers
  19. march — the month
  20. race — humankind
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. march — music
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. race — a contest

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