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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. pit — a hole
  5. lean — thin
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. press — to push
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. spring — a coil
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. press — a publisher
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. perch — the fish
  18. lean — to bend
  19. content — happy
  20. press — newspapers
  21. pit — in a race
  22. content — the amount
  23. spring — the season
  24. content — videos and posts

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