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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 120 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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. bound — obliged
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. press — a publisher
  5. chest — of your body
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. field — farmland
  8. bound — certain
  9. bear — the animal
  10. field — a subject
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. press — to push
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. bear — the animal
  15. field — for sport
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. plane — a tool
  19. chest — a box
  20. press — newspapers
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. bound — tied together
  24. chest — of your body

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