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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: rush · cue · kid · field · cap · jam · last · press

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. last — finally
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. rush — hurry
  5. last — to go on
  6. field — for sport
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. cap — a lid
  9. cap — of ice
  10. press — a publisher
  11. kid — child
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. field — farmland
  14. last — final
  15. cue — for pool
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. press — newspapers
  18. cue — a signal
  19. kid — to tease
  20. field — a subject
  21. cap — a hat
  22. press — to push
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. jam — in traffic

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