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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. wind — moving air
  3. press — to push
  4. wind — moving air
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. mine — for digging
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. field — a subject
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. branch — a division
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. press — a publisher
  15. field — for sport
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. field — farmland
  20. press — newspapers
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. foot — a measure
  24. branch — of a bank

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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