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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: root · kick · roll · cold · mine · mate · press · club

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. press — newspapers
  3. mate — a friend
  4. roll — a list
  5. kick — in football
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. roll — a cake
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. club — for golf
  10. root — of a plant
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. club — for dancing
  13. press — to push
  14. root — of a word
  15. cold — an illness
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. club — a group
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. cold — not warm
  20. press — a publisher
  21. mate — a partner
  22. root — the cause
  23. mine — for digging
  24. mate — to breed

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