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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 120 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: row · cabinet · court · pound · press · wind

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. press — a publisher
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. row — a line
  8. court — of a king
  9. press — to push
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. row — to paddle
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. court — for sport
  14. wind — moving air
  15. press — newspapers
  16. court — of law
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. wind — moving air

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