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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: club · rush · squash · perch · foot · press · ball · hand

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. press — to push
  3. club — for dancing
  4. press — a publisher
  5. hand — in cards
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. hand — help
  11. foot — a measure
  12. press — newspapers
  13. club — a group
  14. squash — the sport
  15. squash — to crush
  16. perch — the fish
  17. ball — a great time
  18. ball — a dance
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. club — for golf
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. rush — to hurry

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