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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: game · race · ground · staff · chest · press · toast · wake

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. game — a match
  4. ground — the earth
  5. toast — bread
  6. chest — of your body
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. race — a contest
  11. ground — crushed
  12. game — wild animals
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. press — to push
  15. staff — a stick
  16. press — a publisher
  17. wake — a trail
  18. race — the arms race
  19. ground — a position
  20. press — newspapers
  21. staff — employees
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. race — humankind

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