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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. chair — a leader
  3. file — a line of people
  4. bulb — for light
  5. kid — to tease
  6. file — a document
  7. bulb — for light
  8. court — of a king
  9. perch — the fish
  10. court — for sport
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. key — the most important part
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. press — newspapers
  18. file — a tool
  19. press — a publisher
  20. kid — child
  21. key — in music
  22. court — of law
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. key — for a lock

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