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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. mug — a face
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. bark — to shout
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. press — to push
  8. press — newspapers
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. court — of law
  11. chest — of your body
  12. mug — a cup
  13. foot — a measure
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. chest — of your body
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. press — a publisher
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. chest — a box
  21. court — of a king
  22. court — for sport
  23. capital — a city
  24. mug — to rob

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