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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: bark · bound · court · dip · staff · fine · content · press

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. court — of law
  4. staff — a stick
  5. press — newspapers
  6. fine — all right
  7. press — a publisher
  8. bound — obliged
  9. staff — employees
  10. bound — certain
  11. press — to push
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. dip — to sink
  14. court — for sport
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bark — to shout
  18. staff — employees
  19. content — the amount
  20. content — happy
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. court — of a king
  24. fine — high quality

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