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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 116 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: racket · mug · kick · trunk · press · kid · scale · chair

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. kid — to tease
  3. press — to push
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. kick — in football
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. press — a publisher
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. chair — a leader
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. mug — a face
  14. press — newspapers
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. mug — to rob
  17. mug — a cup
  18. scale — size or range
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. kid — child
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. scale — in music

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