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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. kid — to tease
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. court — of law
  10. kid — child
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. press — to push
  13. pitch — completely
  14. court — for sport
  15. race — the arms race
  16. race — humankind
  17. mug — a face
  18. race — a contest
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. press — newspapers
  21. court — of a king
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. mug — to rob
  24. mug — a cup

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