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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: court · roll · tear · spell · snap · coach · press · stem

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. court — of law
  4. spell — a short time
  5. court — of a king
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. roll — a cake
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. court — for sport
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. tear — from crying
  14. press — newspapers
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. stem — to come from
  17. tear — to rip
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. spell — letters
  20. spell — magic
  21. snap — to click
  22. press — to push
  23. tear — from crying
  24. roll — a list

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