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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 · stock · straw · suit · rest · net · board · press

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. court — for sport
  3. net — in sport
  4. suit — clothes
  5. net — after costs
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. court — of law
  8. suit — to fit
  9. press — to push
  10. press — newspapers
  11. suit — in cards
  12. board — a committee
  13. press — a publisher
  14. stock — shares
  15. net — for catching
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. rest — what's left
  18. stock — goods
  19. board — to get on
  20. court — of a king
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. rest — a break

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