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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: bank · toast · pit · spring · press · kick

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. spring — a coil
  3. toast — bread
  4. pit — a hole
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. bank — for money
  7. spring — of water
  8. pit — in a race
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. kick — in football
  11. bank — of a river
  12. spring — the season
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. press — to push
  15. bank — for money
  16. press — a publisher
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. press — newspapers

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