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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: press · net · race · charge · chair · staff

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. net — after costs
  3. staff — employees
  4. charge — a price
  5. race — humankind
  6. press — newspapers
  7. net — for catching
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. race — a contest
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. press — to push
  12. charge — in control
  13. staff — a stick
  14. chair — a leader
  15. press — a publisher
  16. net — in sport
  17. charge — electricity
  18. race — the arms race

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