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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — to tease
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. cue — a hint
  6. press — to push
  7. cue — a signal
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. land — a country
  11. press — a publisher
  12. cue — for pool
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. press — newspapers
  17. kick — in football
  18. land — ground

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