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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. net — for catching
  3. press — a publisher
  4. march — the month
  5. court — of a king
  6. press — to push
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. press — newspapers
  11. net — in sport
  12. court — for sport
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. tear — to rip
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. march — the month
  17. net — after costs
  18. pop — soda
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. pop — to visit
  23. court — of law
  24. march — music

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