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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: stick · club · pound · press · saw · snap

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. saw — the tool
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. press — to push
  6. club — a group
  7. pound — a weight
  8. saw — the tool
  9. snap — to click
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. club — for dancing
  12. press — newspapers
  13. press — a publisher
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. club — for golf

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