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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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. press — to push
  4. bound — certain
  5. drill — army training
  6. rash — a series
  7. court — for sport
  8. court — of law
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. rash — hasty
  12. drill — the tool
  13. press — a publisher
  14. press — newspapers
  15. bound — obliged
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. court — of a king
  21. drill — a practice
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bound — tied together

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