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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. saw — the tool
  3. prune — to trim
  4. spring — of water
  5. press — newspapers
  6. charge — a price
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. game — a match
  9. charge — electricity
  10. spring — the season
  11. capital — a city
  12. charge — in control
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. saw — the tool
  15. game — wild animals
  16. spring — a coil
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. capital — money
  19. press — to push
  20. kid — child
  21. prune — to trim
  22. kid — to tease
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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