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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 120 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: mate · mine · pop · press · race · kid · ground · club

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. ground — the earth
  3. club — a group
  4. club — for golf
  5. pop — to visit
  6. race — the arms race
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. kid — to tease
  9. kid — child
  10. mate — a partner
  11. pop — music
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. pop — soda
  14. race — humankind
  15. press — a publisher
  16. mate — to breed
  17. mine — for digging
  18. press — to push
  19. club — for dancing
  20. ground — a position
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. race — a contest
  23. ground — crushed
  24. press — newspapers

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