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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: club · pit · toast · kick · field · race · cue · press

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. pit — a hole
  3. cue — a signal
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. toast — bread
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. cue — for pool
  8. field — for sport
  9. press — to push
  10. race — a contest
  11. race — humankind
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. press — newspapers
  14. field — a subject
  15. race — the arms race
  16. club — for golf
  17. kick — in football
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. club — a group
  21. press — a publisher
  22. pit — in a race
  23. club — for dancing
  24. field — farmland

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