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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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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: chip · wind · arm · press · charge · pitch · field · bark

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. field — farmland
  3. press — a publisher
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. chip — for betting
  7. field — a subject
  8. bark — to shout
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. charge — a price
  12. pitch — completely
  13. field — for sport
  14. charge — electricity
  15. press — to push
  16. press — newspapers
  17. chip — to eat
  18. charge — in control
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. wind — to turn a key

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