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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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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: press · net · track · clip · bay · pitch · tube · march

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. tube — the underground
  4. tube — a container
  5. clip — for paper
  6. clip — to cut
  7. clip — a video
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. net — in sport
  11. press — to push
  12. press — a publisher
  13. net — for catching
  14. net — after costs
  15. press — newspapers
  16. track — a path
  17. pitch — completely
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. track — a song
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. march — the month
  23. track — to keep track
  24. march — music

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