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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: mate · lean · sharp · prune · mug · press · wind · net

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. mug — a face
  3. press — to push
  4. sharp — clever
  5. mug — a cup
  6. mug — to rob
  7. lean — thin
  8. mate — a partner
  9. prune — to trim
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. net — for catching
  12. mate — to breed
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. net — after costs
  15. mate — a friend
  16. lean — to bend
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. net — in sport
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. press — newspapers
  22. press — a publisher
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. prune — to trim

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