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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. race — the arms race
  3. court — for sport
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fine — all right
  6. club — for dancing
  7. row — a line
  8. court — of law
  9. fall — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. race — humankind
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. press — to push
  16. row — to paddle
  17. court — of a king
  18. club — a group
  19. mine — for digging
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. fine — high quality
  22. club — for golf
  23. press — newspapers
  24. race — a contest

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