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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. press — to push
  3. clip — for paper
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. bank — of a river
  6. bank — for money
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. clip — to cut
  9. court — of a king
  10. squash — the sport
  11. press — newspapers
  12. last — final
  13. last — to go on
  14. chest — a box
  15. last — finally
  16. squash — to crush
  17. court — of law
  18. court — for sport
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. chest — of your body
  21. chest — of your body
  22. clip — a video
  23. bank — for money
  24. temple — a place of worship

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