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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. court — of law
  3. land — to come down
  4. press — a publisher
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. court — for sport
  8. press — to push
  9. race — a contest
  10. saw — the tool
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. race — humankind
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. saw — the tool
  15. race — the arms race
  16. court — of a king
  17. bear — the animal
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. press — newspapers
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. land — a country
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. bear — the animal

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