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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: toast · kick · pitcher · file · squash · press · snap · rest

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. toast — bread
  3. rest — what's left
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. squash — the sport
  7. file — a tool
  8. file — a document
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. rest — a break
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. press — a publisher
  16. press — newspapers
  17. squash — to crush
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. kick — in football
  20. rest — what's left
  21. file — a line of people
  22. press — to push
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. kick — a thrill

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