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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 · press · roll · rash · degree · mouse · wound

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. press — to push
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. degree — temperature
  5. degree — from a university
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. press — newspapers
  8. stock — shares
  9. roll — a list
  10. rash — a series
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. rash — hasty
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. wound — an injury
  16. roll — a cake
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. court — of law
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. press — a publisher
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. degree — an amount
  23. court — for sport
  24. court — of a king

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