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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: file · lean · pound · chest · court · press

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. file — a tool
  3. pound — a weight
  4. court — for sport
  5. file — a document
  6. lean — to bend
  7. file — a line of people
  8. court — of a king
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. press — newspapers
  13. court — of law
  14. chest — a box
  15. press — to push
  16. chest — of your body
  17. lean — thin
  18. press — a publisher

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