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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. press — a publisher
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bound — certain
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. ball — a great time
  7. spring — of water
  8. ball — a dance
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. bound — tied together
  11. press — to push
  12. bat — the animal
  13. sharp — clever
  14. spring — a coil
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. bank — for money
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. foot — a measure
  21. press — newspapers
  22. bank — for money
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. spring — the season

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