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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: last · trunk · court · rush · perch · mouse · press · hand

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. press — a publisher
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. last — finally
  8. rush — hurry
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. hand — in cards
  12. perch — the fish
  13. press — to push
  14. last — final
  15. hand — help
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. court — of law
  18. press — newspapers
  19. last — to go on
  20. court — for sport
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. mouse — the animal

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