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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  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. season — of the year
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. court — for sport
  4. court — of a king
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. scale — in music
  7. wind — moving air
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. court — of law
  11. press — to push
  12. lean — to bend
  13. season — in sport
  14. press — a publisher
  15. lean — thin
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. deal — to handle
  21. wind — moving air
  22. press — newspapers
  23. trunk — of a car
  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