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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · bear · mine · arm · stick · last · fine · spell

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. bear — the animal
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. last — to go on
  5. last — final
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. fine — high quality
  8. bear — the animal
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. press — to push
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. spell — a short time
  16. press — a publisher
  17. mine — for digging
  18. fine — all right
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. last — finally
  22. press — newspapers
  23. spell — letters
  24. spell — magic

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