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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 120 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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. game — a match
  3. press — a publisher
  4. craft — boats
  5. craft — a skill
  6. pop — music
  7. game — wild animals
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. court — of a king
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. pop — soda
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. scale — size or range
  16. scale — in music
  17. rush — hurry
  18. ball — a dance
  19. court — for sport
  20. pop — to visit
  21. press — newspapers
  22. court — of law
  23. ball — a great time
  24. craft — a handicraft

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