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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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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: pound · club · bore · press · fork · march · dip · court

  1. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. march — the month
  3. pound — a weight
  4. press — a publisher
  5. bore — to tire
  6. club — for golf
  7. press — to push
  8. fork — in a road
  9. bore — to drill
  10. court — of a king
  11. club — a group
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. court — for sport
  18. court — of law
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. club — for dancing
  21. press — newspapers
  22. march — music
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. march — the month

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