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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: bat · drill · press · safe · pitcher · file · chair · branch

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. bat — the animal
  4. file — a tool
  5. file — a line of people
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. press — to push
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. chair — a leader
  11. press — newspapers
  12. drill — army training
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. file — a document
  15. branch — a division
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. drill — a practice
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. drill — the tool
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. chair — a professorship

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