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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 · track · chest · pit · prune · press · current · chair

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. chair — a leader
  3. current — happening now
  4. chest — of your body
  5. track — a song
  6. current — electric
  7. pit — in a race
  8. track — a path
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. current — of water
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. bear — the animal
  13. press — newspapers
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. pit — a hole
  16. prune — to trim
  17. press — to push
  18. chest — a box
  19. prune — to trim
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. chest — of your body
  22. track — to keep track
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bear — to put up with

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