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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kid · firm · ruler · cell · court · press

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. kid — child
  3. firm — decided
  4. court — for sport
  5. press — a publisher
  6. press — newspapers
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. court — of a king
  10. kid — to tease
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. cell — a phone
  13. firm — a company
  14. firm — steady
  15. cell — in biology
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. press — to push
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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