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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. press — a publisher
  4. board — to get on
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. press — to push
  7. bear — the animal
  8. craft — boats
  9. vault — a safe
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. board — a committee
  12. craft — a skill
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. press — newspapers

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