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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 116 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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. present — a gift
  3. bank — for money
  4. spell — letters
  5. bat — the animal
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. kid — child
  8. press — a publisher
  9. press — to push
  10. bank — for money
  11. spell — magic
  12. present — the time now
  13. present — there
  14. press — newspapers
  15. bank — of a river
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. prune — to trim
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. spell — a short time
  23. kid — to tease
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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