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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 120 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: cell · press · hide · staff · stick · snap · rest · ball

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. staff — a stick
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. ball — a great time
  7. cell — in biology
  8. staff — employees
  9. cell — a phone
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. press — a publisher
  12. staff — employees
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. ball — a dance
  16. rest — what's left
  17. snap — to click
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. press — to push
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. rest — a break
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. rest — what's left
  24. press — newspapers

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