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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: wind · saw · ruler · kick · lean · bat · can · press

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. can — to be able to
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. wind — moving air
  5. can — a tin
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. can — a tin
  8. lean — to bend
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. lean — thin
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. press — newspapers
  15. kick — in football
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. bat — the animal
  19. press — a publisher
  20. press — to push
  21. saw — the tool
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bat — for baseball

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