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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 120 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: spring · kick · bulb · row · press · track · patient · court

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. press — a publisher
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. bulb — for light
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — a coil
  8. row — to paddle
  9. track — to keep track
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. press — newspapers
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. court — for sport
  14. press — to push
  15. track — a song
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. court — of a king
  19. bulb — for light
  20. row — a line
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. track — a path
  23. spring — of water
  24. kick — in football

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