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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. net — after costs
  3. staff — employees
  4. press — a publisher
  5. press — newspapers
  6. net — for catching
  7. press — to push
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. land — to come down
  10. staff — a stick
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. rule — government
  14. land — a country
  15. net — in sport
  16. land — ground
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. mine — for digging
  19. vault — a safe
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. rule — a law
  24. staff — employees

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