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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 · hide · bowl · date · kick · object

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. object — an aim
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. press — to push
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. object — a thing
  12. press — newspapers
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. date — the fruit
  15. kick — in football
  16. press — a publisher
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. bowl — a football final

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