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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: kick · press · fork · dip · rock · chest · court · sharp

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. dip — to sink
  4. chest — of your body
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. court — for sport
  7. press — to push
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. rock — music
  10. sharp — clever
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. fork — in a road
  14. rock — a stone
  15. kick — in football
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. press — newspapers
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — of law
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. chest — of your body
  24. press — a publisher

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