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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: bay · cold · leaves · rash · press · bear · ruler · court

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. press — a publisher
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. press — newspapers
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. court — of a king
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. court — of law
  13. press — to push
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. rash — hasty
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bear — the animal
  18. rash — a series
  19. cold — an illness
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bear — the animal
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. court — for sport

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