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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. press — to push
  3. press — a publisher
  4. court — of law
  5. mine — for digging
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. drill — a practice
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. drill — the tool
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. press — newspapers
  15. court — for sport
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. court — of a king
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. drill — army training
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. calf — a young animal

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