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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: press · season · cell · pop · kick · dip

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. press — newspapers
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. dip — to sink
  5. press — a publisher
  6. pop — music
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. press — to push
  9. pop — soda
  10. cell — a phone
  11. pop — to visit
  12. season — of the year
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. cell — in biology
  17. kick — in football
  18. cell — in a prison

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