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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: lean · court · press · tear · nail · content · rock · bark

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — to rip
  4. lean — thin
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. court — for sport
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. press — a publisher
  10. rock — a stone
  11. content — the amount
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. lean — to bend
  14. court — of law
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. press — to push
  17. tear — from crying
  18. rock — music
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. bark — to shout
  22. content — happy
  23. press — newspapers
  24. rock — to move gently

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