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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: track · prune · press · row · chair · fall · pitch · bark

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. track — to keep track
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. chair — a leader
  5. pitch — completely
  6. fall — the season
  7. fall — to drop
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. track — a song
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. bark — to shout
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. press — to push
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — to trim
  17. track — a path
  18. row — to paddle
  19. press — a publisher
  20. press — newspapers
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. row — a line

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