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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: pit · club · bark · press · fork · spring

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. press — a publisher
  3. spring — of water
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. bark — to shout
  7. press — newspapers
  8. spring — the season
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. pit — a hole
  11. club — a group
  12. club — for golf
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. pit — in a race
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. club — for dancing
  17. fork — in a road
  18. spring — a coil

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