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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. press — to push
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. court — of law
  5. board — to get on
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. mate — a friend
  8. court — for sport
  9. cap — of ice
  10. mate — to breed
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. mate — a partner
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — the tool
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. press — a publisher
  18. cap — a lid
  19. club — a group
  20. cap — a hat
  21. court — of a king
  22. club — for golf
  23. press — newspapers
  24. board — a committee

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