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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. court — for sport
  3. swing — to play on
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. spring — a coil
  6. press — a publisher
  7. scale — size or range
  8. swing — in golf
  9. court — of law
  10. press — newspapers
  11. spring — of water
  12. spring — the season
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. mug — a face
  15. mug — a cup
  16. mug — to rob
  17. lean — to bend
  18. vault — a safe
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. lean — thin
  21. scale — in music
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. swing — music
  24. court — of a king

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