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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: suit · press · cap · coach · pitcher · cold · court · stock

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. press — a publisher
  3. suit — in cards
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. cold — an illness
  6. court — of a king
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. cap — of ice
  11. press — newspapers
  12. press — to push
  13. suit — clothes
  14. cap — a hat
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. cap — a lid
  19. stock — shares
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. court — for sport
  22. court — of law
  23. suit — to fit
  24. cold — not warm

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