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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 120 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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. staff — employees
  3. tear — from crying
  4. court — of a king
  5. press — newspapers
  6. press — to push
  7. staff — a stick
  8. tear — from crying
  9. key — the most important part
  10. branch — a division
  11. content — the amount
  12. court — for sport
  13. content — happy
  14. key — for a lock
  15. court — of law
  16. press — a publisher
  17. key — in music
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. tear — to rip
  23. bat — the animal
  24. staff — employees

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