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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: club · file · race · calf · press · court

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. press — to push
  4. press — newspapers
  5. court — for sport
  6. club — for dancing
  7. race — the arms race
  8. club — for golf
  9. file — a tool
  10. file — a line of people
  11. file — a document
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. race — a contest
  14. club — a group
  15. court — of a king
  16. race — humankind
  17. press — a publisher
  18. court — of law

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