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

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. field — for sport
  3. season — of the year
  4. branch — a division
  5. ball — a dance
  6. field — farmland
  7. ball — a great time
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. press — a publisher
  13. field — a subject
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. kid — child
  16. season — in sport
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. kid — to tease
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. vault — a safe
  21. kick — in football
  22. press — newspapers
  23. press — to push
  24. kick — with a leg

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