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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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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: stick · kick · press · kid · cabinet · mug · cap · game

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. game — wild animals
  3. cap — a hat
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cap — a lid
  6. mug — a face
  7. kid — child
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. press — to push
  10. press — newspapers
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. mug — to rob
  13. game — a match
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. press — a publisher
  16. mug — a cup
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cap — of ice
  19. kid — to tease
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. kick — in football
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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