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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: press · chest · perch · drill · cap · craft

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. craft — a skill
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. press — a publisher
  5. chest — of your body
  6. cap — of ice
  7. chest — a box
  8. drill — army training
  9. cap — a lid
  10. chest — of your body
  11. perch — the fish
  12. drill — the tool
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. drill — a practice
  15. press — newspapers
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. press — to push
  18. cap — a hat

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