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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. press — a publisher
  3. press — newspapers
  4. court — of a king
  5. hand — help
  6. drill — the tool
  7. tube — the underground
  8. court — of law
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. drill — army training
  11. pit — in a race
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. spring — of water
  14. tube — a container
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. spring — the season
  17. spring — a coil
  18. pit — a hole
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bark — to shout
  21. hand — in cards
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. court — for sport
  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