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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: mark · coach · bat · content · press · saw · land · pitcher

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. saw — the tool
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. content — happy
  5. land — ground
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. land — a country
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. press — to push
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. bat — the animal
  12. mark — a trace
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. land — to come down
  17. content — the amount
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. press — newspapers
  22. mark — a grade
  23. saw — the tool
  24. pitcher — a jug

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