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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. press — a publisher
  4. track — a path
  5. press — to push
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. capital — a city
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. foot — a measure
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. lean — to bend
  17. lean — thin
  18. track — to keep track
  19. track — a song
  20. cell — in biology
  21. press — newspapers
  22. cell — a phone
  23. capital — money
  24. mouse — the animal

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