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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. net — after costs
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. season — of the year
  6. fine — high quality
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. game — wild animals
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. wound — an injury
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. press — newspapers
  14. press — a publisher
  15. fine — all right
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. season — in sport
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. wound — an injury
  20. net — for catching
  21. game — a match
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. net — in sport
  24. press — to push

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