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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. firm — steady
  4. bear — the animal
  5. firm — a company
  6. file — a tool
  7. roll — a list
  8. last — final
  9. ball — a great time
  10. bat — the animal
  11. press — to push
  12. press — a publisher
  13. last — to go on
  14. last — finally
  15. file — a line of people
  16. press — newspapers
  17. file — a document
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. firm — decided
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. bear — the animal
  24. roll — a cake

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