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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: ball · saw · bore · game · date · press · file · mate

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. press — to push
  4. mate — a friend
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. game — wild animals
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. file — a document
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. saw — the tool
  13. game — a match
  14. mate — to breed
  15. press — newspapers
  16. file — a line of people
  17. bore — to tire
  18. ball — a great time
  19. mate — a partner
  20. file — a tool
  21. bore — to drill
  22. ball — a dance
  23. saw — the tool
  24. date — the fruit

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