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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: press · lean · mate · mine · bear · drill · track · bat

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. drill — the tool
  4. mate — a friend
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bear — the animal
  7. drill — army training
  8. bat — the animal
  9. track — to keep track
  10. lean — to bend
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. mine — for digging
  13. press — to push
  14. drill — a practice
  15. lean — thin
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. track — a path
  18. press — newspapers
  19. mate — a partner
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. mate — to breed
  23. press — a publisher
  24. track — a song

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