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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: bowl · court · press · temple · toast · land · kick · leaves

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. court — of law
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. court — of a king
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. press — newspapers
  8. press — to push
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. toast — bread
  12. press — a publisher
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. kick — in football
  16. land — a country
  17. court — for sport
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. land — to come down
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. land — ground
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. kick — a thrill

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