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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: kick · squash · wind · press · scale · cell

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. squash — the sport
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. press — newspapers
  5. wind — moving air
  6. kick — in football
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. cell — in biology
  10. press — a publisher
  11. squash — to crush
  12. cell — a phone
  13. scale — size or range
  14. scale — in music
  15. wind — moving air
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. press — to push

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