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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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. court — of a king
  3. chair — a leader
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. press — to push
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. court — for sport
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. date — the fruit
  11. hand — help
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. court — of law
  14. wind — moving air
  15. mark — a trace
  16. press — newspapers
  17. mark — a grade
  18. press — a publisher
  19. wind — moving air
  20. scale — size or range
  21. scale — in music
  22. hand — in cards
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. date — on the calendar

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