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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. snap — to click
  5. bark — to shout
  6. fine — high quality
  7. present — there
  8. craft — a skill
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mine — for digging
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. present — a gift
  13. press — a publisher
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. press — newspapers
  18. craft — boats
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. fine — all right
  21. press — to push
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. present — the time now
  24. lean — thin

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