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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. court — of law
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. spell — magic
  5. net — for catching
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. court — of a king
  8. bat — the animal
  9. press — to push
  10. spell — a short time
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. press — newspapers
  14. net — after costs
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. pound — a weight
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. net — in sport
  20. court — for sport
  21. press — a publisher
  22. chip — to eat
  23. spell — letters
  24. chip — for betting

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