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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. race — a contest
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. lean — thin
  6. rule — a law
  7. race — the arms race
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. ball — a dance
  10. press — newspapers
  11. race — humankind
  12. ball — a great time
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. press — to push
  15. lean — to bend
  16. press — a publisher
  17. hand — in cards
  18. rule — government
  19. court — of a king
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. court — for sport
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. court — of law
  24. lean — to rest against

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