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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 124 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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. press — a publisher
  3. pop — to visit
  4. press — to push
  5. rash — hasty
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. pop — soda
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. field — a subject
  12. perch — the fish
  13. ball — a great time
  14. rest — what's left
  15. field — farmland
  16. rash — a series
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. pop — music
  19. ball — a dance
  20. sharp — clever
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. press — newspapers
  23. field — for sport
  24. rest — a break

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