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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: press · rash · court · nail · bulb · wound · stick · cell

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. bulb — for light
  3. court — of a king
  4. press — newspapers
  5. press — a publisher
  6. court — for sport
  7. rash — hasty
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. rash — a series
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — an injury
  18. bulb — for light
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. cell — in biology
  22. press — to push
  23. court — of law
  24. bulb — of a plant

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