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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: trunk · patient · firm · pit · press · swing

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. swing — to play on
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. firm — steady
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. press — to push
  9. swing — music
  10. swing — in golf
  11. press — a publisher
  12. pit — in a race
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. press — newspapers
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. pit — a hole
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. firm — a company

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