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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ruler · press · bat · pit · dip · rule

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. press — a publisher
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. press — to push
  6. dip — to sink
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — the animal
  11. rule — a law
  12. press — newspapers
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. pit — a hole
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. rule — government
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. pit — in a race

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