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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: press · chair · stand · kid · rest · bear

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. press — a publisher
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. kid — to tease
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. press — newspapers
  10. rest — a break
  11. rest — what's left
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. press — to push
  14. kid — child
  15. stand — to bear
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — the animal
  18. rest — what's left

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