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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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. net — for catching
  3. press — newspapers
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. land — a country
  9. land — to come down
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. press — a publisher
  12. present — there
  13. land — ground
  14. press — to push
  15. kid — child
  16. net — after costs
  17. race — a contest
  18. kid — to tease
  19. race — humankind
  20. net — in sport
  21. rash — hasty
  22. present — a gift
  23. present — the time now
  24. race — the arms race

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