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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: lean · season · cold · bear · stand · snap · hand · press

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. hand — help
  3. season — in sport
  4. cold — an illness
  5. press — a publisher
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. press — to push
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. bear — the animal
  10. cold — not warm
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. lean — to bend
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. snap — to click
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. bear — the animal
  19. press — newspapers
  20. hand — in cards
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. stand — to bear
  23. season — of the year
  24. season — to add flavour

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