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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. squash — the sport
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. clip — for paper
  6. press — newspapers
  7. court — of a king
  8. tear — to rip
  9. squash — to crush
  10. press — to push
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. tear — from crying
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. clip — to cut
  15. clip — a video
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. ball — a great time
  19. tear — from crying
  20. press — a publisher
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. court — for sport
  23. court — of law
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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