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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: cabinet · mine · swing · rush · court · kid · bear · press

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rush — hurry
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. press — to push
  8. swing — to play on
  9. mine — for digging
  10. bear — the animal
  11. kid — child
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. kid — to tease
  14. court — of a king
  15. bear — the animal
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. swing — music
  18. press — a publisher
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. court — for sport
  21. press — newspapers
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. swing — in golf
  24. mine — belonging to me

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