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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 116 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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. press — a publisher
  3. spring — a coil
  4. field — farmland
  5. board — a committee
  6. can — a tin
  7. field — for sport
  8. bound — tied together
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. spring — of water
  11. spring — the season
  12. board — to get on
  13. field — a subject
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. press — to push
  16. bound — certain
  17. bound — obliged
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. drill — a practice
  20. press — newspapers
  21. drill — the tool
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — to be able to
  24. drill — army training

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