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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.

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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: pound · fan · cue · staff · bark · court · press · stick

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. press — a publisher
  3. cue — a hint
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. bark — to shout
  9. staff — a stick
  10. cue — a signal
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. staff — employees
  13. press — to push
  14. court — of law
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. staff — employees
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. press — newspapers
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. court — of a king
  23. pound — a weight
  24. cue — for pool

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