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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: land · press · bear · stick · scale · last

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. last — to go on
  3. scale — size or range
  4. press — a publisher
  5. scale — in music
  6. bear — the animal
  7. last — final
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. press — newspapers
  10. bear — the animal
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. land — to come down
  13. land — ground
  14. last — finally
  15. land — a country
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. press — to push

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