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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. press — a publisher
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. field — farmland
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. key — in music
  7. shower — rain
  8. press — newspapers
  9. key — the most important part
  10. stand — to bear
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. press — to push
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. game — wild animals
  17. field — for sport
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. game — a match
  21. field — a subject
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. shower — to wash

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