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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pitcher · bowl · press · court · jam · content · field · pit

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. court — of law
  3. content — happy
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. press — a publisher
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. press — to push
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. press — newspapers
  10. court — of a king
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. content — the amount
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. field — for sport
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. court — for sport
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. pit — in a race
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. pit — a hole
  23. field — farmland
  24. field — a subject

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