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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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. file — a line of people
  3. saw — the tool
  4. field — a subject
  5. key — for a lock
  6. press — to push
  7. key — in music
  8. press — a publisher
  9. saw — the tool
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. field — farmland
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. club — a group
  15. file — a document
  16. club — for golf
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. field — for sport
  19. club — for dancing
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. file — a tool
  22. press — newspapers
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. key — the most important part

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