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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. mug — a cup
  3. court — for sport
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. press — to push
  6. field — for sport
  7. ball — a great time
  8. field — a subject
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. pound — a weight
  12. court — of law
  13. mug — to rob
  14. mug — a face
  15. press — newspapers
  16. rash — hasty
  17. ball — a dance
  18. dip — to sink
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. rash — a series
  21. press — a publisher
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. court — of a king
  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