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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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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: craft · cue · rest · chair · rule · press · clip · kick

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. clip — for paper
  3. cue — a hint
  4. rule — a law
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. cue — a signal
  7. clip — to cut
  8. rest — what's left
  9. craft — a skill
  10. kick — in football
  11. clip — a video
  12. press — to push
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rule — government
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. rest — a break
  20. craft — boats
  21. chair — a leader
  22. press — newspapers
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. cue — for pool

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