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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: kid · staff · rule · court · mouse · press

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. kid — child
  4. staff — employees
  5. court — of law
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. rule — a law
  8. rule — government
  9. press — a publisher
  10. press — to push
  11. press — newspapers
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. court — for sport
  14. staff — employees
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. staff — a stick
  17. court — of a king
  18. mouse — the animal

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