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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. press — a publisher
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. spring — of water
  6. spring — a coil
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. cold — not warm
  9. press — newspapers
  10. pit — a hole
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. pit — in a race
  15. press — to push
  16. cold — an illness
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. rest — what's left
  19. spring — the season
  20. stem — to come from
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. rest — what's left
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. rest — a break

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