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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: bear · bat · press · fall · drill · root · charge · lean

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. drill — a practice
  4. charge — electricity
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. press — to push
  7. root — the cause
  8. fall — to drop
  9. root — of a word
  10. drill — the tool
  11. lean — thin
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. fall — the season
  15. drill — army training
  16. root — of a plant
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. press — a publisher
  19. charge — a price
  20. fall — to drop
  21. charge — in control
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bear — the animal
  24. press — newspapers

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