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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. press — a publisher
  3. press — newspapers
  4. court — of law
  5. press — to push
  6. spring — the season
  7. band — a ring
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spell — letters
  12. court — for sport
  13. pop — to visit
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. pop — music
  16. spring — of water
  17. band — a music group
  18. spell — a short time
  19. spell — magic
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. pop — soda
  22. court — of a king
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. band — a rubber band

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