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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. press — newspapers
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. mark — a trace
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. branch — a division
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. mark — a grade
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. clip — to cut
  11. press — to push
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. cold — not warm
  14. court — for sport
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. cold — an illness
  17. court — of law
  18. press — a publisher
  19. clip — a video
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. court — of a king
  22. clip — for paper
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. bowl — a dish

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