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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. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. press — a publisher
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. bear — the animal
  6. chair — a leader
  7. bound — obliged
  8. bound — tied together
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. bound — certain
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. spring — of water
  15. bear — the animal
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. press — to push
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. spring — a coil
  20. wind — moving air
  21. branch — a division
  22. press — newspapers
  23. wind — moving air
  24. spring — the season

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