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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 124 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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. bound — certain
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. rock — music
  6. face — part of the head
  7. chip — to eat
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. court — for sport
  10. rash — a series
  11. press — a publisher
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. bat — the animal
  14. face — to confront
  15. bound — tied together
  16. face — to point toward
  17. press — newspapers
  18. chip — for betting
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. press — to push
  21. bound — obliged
  22. court — of law
  23. rock — a stone
  24. court — of a king

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