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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. row — to paddle
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. court — of law
  5. cell — in biology
  6. press — newspapers
  7. press — a publisher
  8. court — for sport
  9. kick — in football
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. cell — a phone
  12. suit — in cards
  13. court — of a king
  14. row — a line
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — to drop
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. suit — clothes
  20. fall — the season
  21. suit — to fit
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. kick — a thrill

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