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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. press — a publisher
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. net — after costs
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. press — newspapers
  8. perch — the fish
  9. club — for dancing
  10. club — for golf
  11. vault — a safe
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a document
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. club — a group
  17. wind — moving air
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. net — in sport
  21. wind — moving air
  22. file — a tool
  23. press — to push
  24. kick — in football

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