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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: tear · content · press · ruler · pop · court

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. court — of law
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. content — the amount
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — for sport
  7. tear — from crying
  8. pop — soda
  9. pop — music
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. press — to push
  12. press — a publisher
  13. pop — to visit
  14. tear — from crying
  15. content — happy
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. tear — to rip
  18. press — newspapers

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