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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: net · pound · bat · key · leaves · press · arm · kid

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. kid — child
  5. press — a publisher
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. net — for catching
  9. pound — a weight
  10. net — after costs
  11. key — the most important part
  12. net — in sport
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. kid — to tease
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. press — to push
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. press — newspapers
  21. bat — the animal
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. key — in music
  24. key — for a lock

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