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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 like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. ball — a great time
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. press — a publisher
  7. date — the fruit
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. bear — the animal
  10. scale — size or range
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. capital — money
  15. scale — in music
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. press — to push
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. bear — the animal
  22. press — newspapers
  23. ball — a dance
  24. capital — a city

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