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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. press — a publisher
  5. rule — government
  6. pitch — completely
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. bat — the animal
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. perch — the fish
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. rule — a law
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. press — to push
  18. branch — a division
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. mine — for digging
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. press — newspapers
  24. mine — belonging to me

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