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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. lean — to bend
  3. bark — to shout
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. craft — boats
  6. swing — in golf
  7. swing — to play on
  8. craft — a skill
  9. pound — a weight
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. press — to push
  13. lean — thin
  14. press — a publisher
  15. press — newspapers
  16. mate — to breed
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. swing — music
  19. mate — a partner
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. kick — in football
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. kick — a thrill

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