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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. press — a publisher
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. bat — the animal
  8. squash — to crush
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. craft — boats
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. mate — a partner
  13. craft — a skill
  14. squash — the sport
  15. wind — moving air
  16. press — to push
  17. game — wild animals
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. press — newspapers
  20. mate — to breed
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. game — a match
  24. mate — a friend

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