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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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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 · lash · cell · tube · fork · rock · court · chip

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. court — of a king
  3. press — newspapers
  4. press — a publisher
  5. chip — for betting
  6. press — to push
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. tube — a container
  9. chip — to eat
  10. court — of law
  11. court — for sport
  12. fork — in a road
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. tube — the underground
  15. cell — a phone
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. rock — music
  22. rock — a stone
  23. cell — in biology
  24. cell — in a prison

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