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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. last — to go on
  7. clip — for paper
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. last — final
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. game — a match
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. last — finally
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. clip — a video
  17. press — newspapers
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. field — for sport
  20. press — a publisher
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. clip — to cut
  23. field — a subject
  24. field — farmland

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