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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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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 · bound · tear · stem · swing · cabinet

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. bound — tied together
  3. press — a publisher
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. tear — from crying
  6. press — newspapers
  7. tear — to rip
  8. bound — certain
  9. press — to push
  10. tear — from crying
  11. swing — music
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. swing — in golf
  15. stem — to come from
  16. bound — obliged
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. swing — to play on

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