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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: kid · net · press · leaves · wave · ball · rash · fork

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. net — in sport
  3. kid — to tease
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. net — for catching
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. press — newspapers
  9. fork — in a road
  10. kid — child
  11. press — to push
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. ball — a dance
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. press — a publisher
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. ball — a great time
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. net — after costs
  20. rash — hasty
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. rash — a series
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. fork — a garden tool

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