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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. pop — soda
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bark — to shout
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. chair — a leader
  8. press — to push
  9. lie — to recline
  10. ball — a dance
  11. pop — to visit
  12. ball — a great time
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. pop — music
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. press — a publisher
  23. press — newspapers
  24. ball — a round shape

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