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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 · club · kick · fine · straw · vault

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. press — a publisher
  4. press — to push
  5. vault — a safe
  6. press — newspapers
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. club — for golf
  10. club — a group
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. club — for dancing
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. kick — in football
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. fine — all right
  18. kick — with a leg

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