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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. press — a publisher
  3. season — in sport
  4. press — to push
  5. wound — an injury
  6. bore — to tire
  7. firm — decided
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. firm — steady
  10. season — of the year
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. press — newspapers
  16. cold — not warm
  17. court — for sport
  18. firm — a company
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. court — of a king
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. cold — an illness
  23. bore — to drill
  24. cold — the Cold War

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