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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. press — a publisher
  3. press — to push
  4. press — newspapers
  5. degree — from a university
  6. mug — to rob
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. club — a group
  9. pop — to visit
  10. pop — music
  11. ball — a great time
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. club — for golf
  14. degree — an amount
  15. capital — money
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. degree — temperature
  18. mug — a face
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. ball — a dance
  22. capital — a city
  23. mug — a cup
  24. pop — soda

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