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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: kid · snap · staff · ground · race · press · kick · toast

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. staff — employees
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. race — humankind
  5. staff — a stick
  6. press — a publisher
  7. ground — crushed
  8. race — the arms race
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. toast — bread
  11. ground — a position
  12. kid — child
  13. kick — in football
  14. staff — employees
  15. ground — the earth
  16. snap — to click
  17. press — to push
  18. race — a contest
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. kid — to tease
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. press — newspapers
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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