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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: kick · press · bat · fine · rest · key · pit · last

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. rest — what's left
  4. key — the most important part
  5. press — to push
  6. last — final
  7. pit — in a race
  8. key — in music
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. fine — all right
  11. rest — what's left
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. last — to go on
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. press — newspapers
  16. key — for a lock
  17. last — finally
  18. rest — a break
  19. fine — high quality
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. pit — a hole
  22. kick — in football
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. press — a publisher

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