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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. press — to push
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. stem — to come from
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. vault — a safe
  9. wind — moving air
  10. press — newspapers
  11. press — a publisher
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. wind — moving air
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. capital — a city
  22. capital — money
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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