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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. net — after costs
  3. court — of a king
  4. net — in sport
  5. mark — a grade
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. shower — rain
  8. mug — a face
  9. season — in sport
  10. press — a publisher
  11. mark — a trace
  12. mug — a cup
  13. net — for catching
  14. court — for sport
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. press — to push
  18. court — of law
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. press — newspapers
  21. shower — to wash
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. mug — to rob
  24. season — of the year

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