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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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Word bank
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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: can · bark · straw · coach · tear · press

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. can — to be able to
  3. press — to push
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. can — a tin
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — from crying
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. tear — to rip
  12. press — a publisher
  13. press — newspapers
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. straw — a straw man

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