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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 120 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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. last — final
  4. craft — a skill
  5. row — a line
  6. craft — boats
  7. press — a publisher
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. press — newspapers
  10. last — finally
  11. row — to paddle
  12. can — a tin
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. can — to be able to
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bulb — for light
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. bark — to shout
  20. last — to go on
  21. can — a tin
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. bulb — for light

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