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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. sharp — clever
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. fork — in a road
  8. mug — a face
  9. prune — to trim
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bat — the animal
  12. press — a publisher
  13. press — newspapers
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. mug — to rob
  17. cell — a phone
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. press — to push
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. prune — to trim

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