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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 124 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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. mark — a grade
  5. chip — for betting
  6. can — to be able to
  7. court — of a king
  8. degree — from a university
  9. court — for sport
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. can — a tin
  12. press — newspapers
  13. press — a publisher
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. court — of law
  16. mark — a trace
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. chip — to eat
  19. can — a tin
  20. degree — an amount
  21. date — the fruit
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. degree — temperature

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