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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: fork · pop · lean · perch · patient · cell · ball · press

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. ball — a dance
  3. perch — the fish
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. cell — in biology
  6. pop — soda
  7. lean — thin
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. lean — to bend
  10. press — newspapers
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. press — a publisher
  13. press — to push
  14. pop — music
  15. pop — to visit
  16. ball — a great time
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. cell — a phone
  21. fork — in a road
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. fork — a garden tool

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