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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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Word bank
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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: game · prune · last · fan · fall · pitch · spring · press

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. press — newspapers
  5. prune — to trim
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. press — a publisher
  9. fall — the season
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. spring — of water
  12. pitch — completely
  13. spring — a coil
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. game — a match
  16. game — wild animals
  17. last — finally
  18. fall — to drop
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. last — to go on
  21. prune — to trim
  22. press — to push
  23. spring — the season
  24. last — final

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