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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. bat — the animal
  3. press — to push
  4. press — a publisher
  5. club — a group
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. club — for golf
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. ground — crushed
  11. ground — a position
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. net — in sport
  15. shower — rain
  16. ground — the earth
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. press — newspapers
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. shower — to wash
  22. club — for dancing
  23. net — for catching
  24. net — after costs

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