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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 116 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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. press — a publisher
  3. press — to push
  4. board — a committee
  5. rock — music
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. prune — to trim
  10. court — of a king
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. bore — to drill
  13. court — for sport
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. board — to get on
  16. press — newspapers
  17. content — the amount
  18. bore — to tire
  19. prune — to trim
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. rock — a stone
  23. content — happy
  24. court — of law

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