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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. squash — to crush
  4. court — of law
  5. pop — music
  6. pop — to visit
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. press — to push
  9. mine — for digging
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. bore — to drill
  12. scale — size or range
  13. court — of a king
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. rest — a break
  16. court — for sport
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. rest — what's left
  19. squash — the sport
  20. press — newspapers
  21. bore — to tire
  22. rest — what's left
  23. press — a publisher
  24. scale — in music

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