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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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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: stick · root · toast · press · kid · chair

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. kid — child
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. root — the cause
  5. chair — a leader
  6. press — newspapers
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. press — a publisher
  9. kid — to tease
  10. root — of a plant
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. press — to push
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. root — of a word
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. stick — a piece of wood

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