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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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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. press — a publisher
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. perch — the fish
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. press — to push
  10. scale — in music
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. swing — to play on
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. swing — music
  21. swing — in golf
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. press — newspapers
  24. scale — size or range

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