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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 · arm · spring · ruler · bark · press · stand · straw

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — a coil
  8. bear — the animal
  9. press — newspapers
  10. stand — to bear
  11. bark — to shout
  12. bear — the animal
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. spring — of water
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. press — a publisher
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. ruler — for measuring

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