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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: perch · spring · leaves · scale · mine · press · prune · stand

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. prune — to trim
  3. perch — the fish
  4. press — to push
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. spring — a coil
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. press — newspapers
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. scale — size or range
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. prune — to trim
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. spring — the season
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. mine — for digging
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. scale — in music
  22. press — a publisher
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. spring — of water

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