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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: arm · season · press · track · rule · kick · bat · race

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. press — a publisher
  3. rule — government
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. press — newspapers
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. press — to push
  8. season — in sport
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. track — a path
  13. race — humankind
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. rule — a law
  16. race — the arms race
  17. track — a song
  18. track — to keep track
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. season — of the year
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. bat — the animal
  24. kick — in football

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