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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 · present · hand · kid · file · fork · press · bat

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. file — a tool
  5. press — newspapers
  6. file — a line of people
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. rush — hurry
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. press — a publisher
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. kid — to tease
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. present — there
  15. present — the time now
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. kid — child
  18. hand — in cards
  19. present — a gift
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. press — to push
  22. hand — help
  23. fork — in a road
  24. file — a document

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