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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. press — a publisher
  3. season — of the year
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. club — for golf
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. ball — a dance
  10. ball — a great time
  11. club — a group
  12. hand — in cards
  13. craft — a skill
  14. lie — to recline
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. club — for dancing
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. press — to push
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. season — in sport
  22. hand — help
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. press — newspapers

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