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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: court · tube · object · bound · press · current · stock · shower

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  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. stock — shares
  2. current — happening now
  3. court — of a king
  4. tube — the underground
  5. bound — obliged
  6. current — of water
  7. stock — goods
  8. shower — to wash
  9. tube — a container
  10. press — a publisher
  11. bound — tied together
  12. object — to protest
  13. object — an aim
  14. court — of law
  15. shower — rain
  16. object — a thing
  17. press — to push
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. bound — certain
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. current — electric
  23. court — for sport
  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