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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. court — of a king
  3. court — of law
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. can — to be able to
  6. staff — a stick
  7. press — a publisher
  8. staff — employees
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. craft — a skill
  11. press — newspapers
  12. can — a tin
  13. can — a tin
  14. tear — from crying
  15. press — to push
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. tear — from crying
  18. hand — help
  19. staff — employees
  20. hand — in cards
  21. court — for sport
  22. tear — to rip
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. craft — boats

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