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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 116 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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. chip — to eat
  3. court — of law
  4. pit — in a race
  5. staff — employees
  6. court — of a king
  7. march — music
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. bat — the animal
  10. pit — a hole
  11. bound — tied together
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. court — for sport
  14. press — newspapers
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. press — a publisher
  17. chip — for betting
  18. march — the month
  19. staff — employees
  20. bound — certain
  21. march — the month
  22. bound — obliged
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. staff — a stick

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