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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: ruler · ball · stock · press · degree · court

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  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. stock — goods
  2. court — of law
  3. court — for sport
  4. ball — a dance
  5. press — newspapers
  6. ball — a great time
  7. stock — shares
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. degree — an amount
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. court — of a king
  15. degree — from a university
  16. degree — temperature
  17. press — to push
  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