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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. hand — help
  3. bark — to shout
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. press — to push
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. press — a publisher
  9. court — for sport
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — to tease
  12. court — of law
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. press — newspapers
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. hand — in cards
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. court — of a king
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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