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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 · mine · land · swing · march · wake · court · stand

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. court — for sport
  3. march — the month
  4. court — of law
  5. land — a country
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. court — of a king
  12. swing — in golf
  13. press — a publisher
  14. march — the month
  15. wake — a trail
  16. march — music
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. stand — to bear
  19. mine — for digging
  20. swing — to play on
  21. land — to come down
  22. press — to push
  23. land — ground
  24. press — newspapers

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