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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 116 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: pit · stock · press · court · bat · chip · bay · fan

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. court — for sport
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. chip — to eat
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. court — of a king
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. chip — for betting
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. pit — a hole
  17. pit — in a race
  18. stock — shares
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. court — of law
  21. bat — the animal
  22. stock — goods
  23. press — to push
  24. press — newspapers

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