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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. cap — a hat
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. staff — employees
  6. cap — of ice
  7. field — farmland
  8. staff — a stick
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. field — for sport
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. press — newspapers
  14. staff — employees
  15. perch — the fish
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. press — a publisher
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. field — a subject
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — to come from
  24. cap — a lid

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