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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. spring — of water
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. press — newspapers
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. drill — a practice
  7. court — of a king
  8. press — a publisher
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. stock — shares
  12. court — for sport
  13. press — to push
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. spring — a coil
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. shower — rain
  18. drill — army training
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. shower — to wash
  21. spring — the season
  22. pitch — completely
  23. stock — goods
  24. drill — the tool

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