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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. capital — a city
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. bore — to tire
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. fall — to drop
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. bore — to drill
  10. fall — to drop
  11. capital — money
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. press — newspapers
  17. fall — the season
  18. shower — to wash
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. press — a publisher
  21. shower — rain
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. trunk — 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