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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. press — a publisher
  4. deal — to handle
  5. prune — to trim
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. net — after costs
  8. present — a gift
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. race — humankind
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. race — a contest
  13. present — there
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. press — newspapers
  17. present — the time now
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. press — to push
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. race — the arms race
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — for catching
  24. straw — dry grass

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