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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: perch · bark · press · court · lie · wind · toast · stock

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. press — to push
  5. wind — moving air
  6. press — a publisher
  7. bark — to shout
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. stock — goods
  11. court — of a king
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. toast — bread
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. perch — the fish
  17. wind — moving air
  18. press — newspapers
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. lie — to recline
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. stock — shares
  24. court — for sport

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