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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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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: hand · foot · spell · pitch · mate · press · bark · prune

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. spell — a short time
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. prune — to trim
  6. mate — to breed
  7. bark — to shout
  8. spell — magic
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. spell — letters
  11. press — newspapers
  12. press — a publisher
  13. mate — a partner
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. foot — a measure
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. prune — to trim
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. mate — a friend
  20. press — to push
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. hand — in cards
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. pitch — completely

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