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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  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. trunk — of an elephant
  2. press — a publisher
  3. current — happening now
  4. mark — a grade
  5. wound — an injury
  6. court — for sport
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. shower — to wash
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. court — of a king
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. shower — rain
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. current — of water
  16. current — electric
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. press — to push
  19. mark — a trace
  20. wound — an injury
  21. court — of law
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  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