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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: snap · chair · stand · press · land · staff · net · last

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. net — in sport
  5. stand — to bear
  6. net — for catching
  7. staff — a stick
  8. staff — employees
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. staff — employees
  11. press — a publisher
  12. press — to push
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. last — finally
  15. land — ground
  16. net — after costs
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. chair — a leader
  19. land — to come down
  20. land — a country
  21. press — newspapers
  22. snap — to click
  23. last — to go on
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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