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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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Word bank
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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: press · bark · court · plane · tear · kick

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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. plane — a tool
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bark — to shout
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. court — of a king
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. tear — to rip
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. tear — from crying
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. court — for sport
  14. press — newspapers
  15. kick — in football
  16. press — to push
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. tear — from crying

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