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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 120 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. press — to push
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. stem — to come from
  5. press — a publisher
  6. spring — a coil
  7. ground — a position
  8. press — newspapers
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. spring — the season
  11. ground — the earth
  12. plane — a tool
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. bark — to shout
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. ground — crushed
  17. spring — of water
  18. bark — of a tree

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