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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: race · bulb · march · fine · press · chest · mark · saw

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. press — a publisher
  3. march — music
  4. march — the month
  5. fine — high quality
  6. chest — a box
  7. saw — the tool
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. press — to push
  10. bulb — for light
  11. press — newspapers
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. saw — the tool
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — of your body
  17. fine — all right
  18. mark — a grade
  19. march — the month
  20. mark — a trace
  21. race — the arms race
  22. race — humankind
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. bulb — for light

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