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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 116 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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. court — of a king
  3. cell — a phone
  4. court — of law
  5. prune — to trim
  6. drill — the tool
  7. press — a publisher
  8. press — to push
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. drill — a practice
  12. prune — to trim
  13. press — newspapers
  14. court — for sport
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. cell — in biology
  17. drill — army training
  18. cell — in a prison

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