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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 120 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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. spell — magic
  3. court — of a king
  4. key — for a lock
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. court — of law
  7. key — the most important part
  8. spell — letters
  9. firm — a company
  10. key — in music
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cold — an illness
  13. spell — a short time
  14. cold — not warm
  15. court — for sport
  16. lie — to recline
  17. press — newspapers
  18. firm — decided
  19. press — a publisher
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. rest — what's left
  22. rest — a break
  23. firm — steady
  24. rest — what's left

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