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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.

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: court · spring · season · toast · can · degree · rock · press

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. degree — an amount
  3. can — a tin
  4. spring — a coil
  5. rock — a stone
  6. rock — music
  7. court — for sport
  8. season — of the year
  9. spring — the season
  10. degree — temperature
  11. spring — of water
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. court — of a king
  14. season — in sport
  15. toast — bread
  16. press — a publisher
  17. can — a tin
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. court — of law
  20. can — to be able to
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. press — newspapers
  24. degree — from a university

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