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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 120 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: land · mine · bat · charge · press · chest · file · mark

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. press — to push
  3. file — a document
  4. press — a publisher
  5. charge — in control
  6. chest — of your body
  7. land — ground
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. file — a tool
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. file — a line of people
  12. chest — of your body
  13. mark — a trace
  14. chest — a box
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. press — newspapers
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. charge — electricity
  19. charge — a price
  20. land — to come down
  21. land — a country
  22. mine — for digging
  23. mark — a grade
  24. bat — the animal

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