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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: press · chair · racket · nail · squash · leaves · kid · track

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. squash — to crush
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. kid — child
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. chair — a leader
  9. press — a publisher
  10. press — newspapers
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. track — a song
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. squash — the sport
  18. track — to keep track
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. kid — to tease
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. press — to push
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. track — a path

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