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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. court — for sport
  3. net — in sport
  4. bore — to drill
  5. season — in sport
  6. press — newspapers
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rash — a series
  9. press — to push
  10. wind — moving air
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. bore — to tire
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. press — a publisher
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. court — of law
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. season — of the year
  22. court — of a king
  23. net — after costs
  24. rash — hasty

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