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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 116 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: court · spring · lash · fine · fork · bound · press · prune

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. 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. court — of law
  2. bound — tied together
  3. fine — high quality
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. court — of a king
  6. fine — all right
  7. bound — certain
  8. fork — in a road
  9. bound — obliged
  10. prune — to trim
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. spring — a coil
  13. court — for sport
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. press — a publisher
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. prune — to trim
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. press — to push
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. spring — the season
  23. spring — of water
  24. 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