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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: ball · season · cold · fork · rest · press · cabinet · rule

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. rest — what's left
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. ball — a great time
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. press — newspapers
  9. cold — an illness
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. rule — a law
  12. ball — a dance
  13. rest — a break
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. fork — in a road
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. rest — what's left
  19. season — of the year
  20. press — a publisher
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. rule — government
  23. cold — not warm
  24. season — in sport

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