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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. bat — the animal
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. key — the most important part
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. lean — thin
  9. lean — to bend
  10. press — a publisher
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. kick — in football
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. bulb — for light
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. bulb — for light
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. key — in music
  20. press — to push
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. press — newspapers

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