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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 124 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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. hand — in cards
  3. court — for sport
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. court — of a king
  6. press — a publisher
  7. hand — help
  8. net — after costs
  9. file — a line of people
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. file — a document
  12. drill — the tool
  13. press — to push
  14. file — a tool
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. stand — to bear
  17. club — a group
  18. net — for catching
  19. club — for dancing
  20. drill — a practice
  21. club — for golf
  22. drill — army training
  23. press — newspapers
  24. net — in sport

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