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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. fall — to drop
  3. can — a tin
  4. stem — to come from
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. press — a publisher
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. fall — the season
  11. prune — to trim
  12. can — to be able to
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. bear — the animal
  17. prune — to trim
  18. press — newspapers
  19. kick — in football
  20. fall — to drop
  21. press — to push
  22. bear — the animal
  23. bark — to shout
  24. can — a tin

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