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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. press — a publisher
  4. club — a group
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. capital — a city
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. shower — rain
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. press — to push
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. club — for dancing
  15. capital — money
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. bat — the animal
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. dip — to sink
  20. stand — to bear
  21. club — for golf
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. press — newspapers
  24. mouse — the animal

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