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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 120 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: pound · press · rest · last · stick · scale

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. last — final
  3. press — to push
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. rest — what's left
  7. press — newspapers
  8. scale — size or range
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. last — to go on
  11. rest — a break
  12. last — finally
  13. rest — what's left
  14. pound — a weight
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. press — a publisher
  18. scale — in music

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