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

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. ground — crushed
  3. land — to come down
  4. land — ground
  5. stand — to bear
  6. press — a publisher
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. game — a match
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. ground — the earth
  14. land — a country
  15. mine — for digging
  16. game — wild animals
  17. ground — a position
  18. press — newspapers
  19. press — to push
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. bark — to shout
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. lean — thin
  24. stand — on your feet

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