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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 116 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: bear · content · press · cell · pitch · bore · fall · racket

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. press — a publisher
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. content — the amount
  7. cell — a phone
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. bore — to drill
  12. pitch — completely
  13. fall — the season
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bore — to tire
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. press — to push
  20. content — happy
  21. cell — in biology
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. press — newspapers

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