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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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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: snap · jam · press · chip · wind · field · bark · kick

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. field — farmland
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. field — a subject
  7. chip — to eat
  8. press — newspapers
  9. press — to push
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. press — a publisher
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. field — for sport
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. snap — to click
  16. wind — moving air
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. kick — in football
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. chip — for betting
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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