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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: rash · press · kick · rest · capital · cell

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. rash — hasty
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. press — newspapers
  7. cell — a phone
  8. rash — a series
  9. cell — in biology
  10. press — a publisher
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — money
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rest — what's left
  17. kick — in football
  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