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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: press · court · wind · bark · net · last · calf · squash

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. bark — to shout
  3. press — newspapers
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. last — final
  6. squash — to crush
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. press — to push
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. net — in sport
  11. net — for catching
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. last — to go on
  14. wind — moving air
  15. last — finally
  16. net — after costs
  17. court — for sport
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. court — of a king
  22. court — of law
  23. wind — moving air
  24. squash — the sport

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