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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 116 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: press · staff · wound · cold · tube · snap · bound · court

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. press — a publisher
  3. press — newspapers
  4. staff — employees
  5. court — of a king
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. staff — a stick
  8. press — to push
  9. tube — the underground
  10. bound — obliged
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. staff — employees
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. snap — to click
  16. bound — certain
  17. cold — not warm
  18. court — for sport
  19. cold — an illness
  20. tube — a container
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. bound — tied together
  23. court — of law
  24. wound — an injury

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