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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. press — a publisher
  3. shower — to wash
  4. can — a tin
  5. press — newspapers
  6. shower — rain
  7. court — for sport
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. field — a subject
  10. can — to be able to
  11. field — for sport
  12. can — a tin
  13. court — of a king
  14. bark — to shout
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. court — of law
  17. press — to push
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. field — farmland
  22. bear — the animal
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bear — to put up with

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