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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rush · pitcher · press · cell · game · mine · chair · current

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. mine — for digging
  3. cell — in biology
  4. press — a publisher
  5. current — happening now
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. chair — a leader
  8. game — wild animals
  9. rush — hurry
  10. press — to push
  11. cell — a phone
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. game — a match
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. current — of water
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. press — newspapers
  18. current — electric
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. game — a kind of play

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