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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · squash · key · land · ruler · perch · court · season

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. key — the most important part
  3. land — a country
  4. key — in music
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. press — newspapers
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. perch — the fish
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. press — a publisher
  11. court — for sport
  12. season — of the year
  13. key — for a lock
  14. court — of law
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. season — in sport
  19. squash — the sport
  20. squash — to crush
  21. press — to push
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. land — to come down
  24. court — of a king

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