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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. field — a subject
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. date — the fruit
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. fall — the season
  8. squash — the sport
  9. court — for sport
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. field — farmland
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. press — newspapers
  16. fall — to drop
  17. field — for sport
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. fall — to drop
  20. court — of law
  21. press — a publisher
  22. rush — hurry
  23. squash — to crush
  24. press — to push

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