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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. rash — hasty
  3. ground — the earth
  4. press — to push
  5. ground — crushed
  6. rash — a series
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. ground — a position
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. net — after costs
  12. can — to be able to
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. foot — a measure
  15. press — newspapers
  16. can — a tin
  17. mine — for digging
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. net — in sport
  20. press — a publisher
  21. can — a tin
  22. net — for catching
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. mine — an explosive

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