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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 120 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: kid · prune · press · rash · cell · kick

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. prune — to trim
  3. rash — hasty
  4. cell — in biology
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. press — to push
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. cell — a phone
  9. kick — in football
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. press — newspapers
  12. prune — to trim
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. rash — a series
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. kid — to tease
  18. press — a publisher

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