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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  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. staff — employees
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. spring — a coil
  5. branch — a division
  6. press — newspapers
  7. press — to push
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. staff — a stick
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. court — of law
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. hand — in cards
  15. hand — help
  16. court — for sport
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. spring — the season
  19. dip — to sink
  20. press — a publisher
  21. staff — employees
  22. spring — of water
  23. branch — of a tree
  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