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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. hand — in cards
  3. club — a group
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. club — for golf
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. vault — a safe
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. kid — child
  10. press — to push
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. mine — for digging
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. hand — help
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. club — for dancing
  20. press — newspapers
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. kid — to tease
  24. calf — a young animal

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