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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: press · cue · field · key · kid · charge · drill · chair

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. key — in music
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. cue — a hint
  5. key — the most important part
  6. drill — the tool
  7. cue — for pool
  8. drill — a practice
  9. press — to push
  10. key — for a lock
  11. kid — to tease
  12. press — newspapers
  13. chair — a leader
  14. field — for sport
  15. drill — army training
  16. press — a publisher
  17. charge — in control
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — farmland
  20. cue — a signal
  21. charge — electricity
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. kid — child

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