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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: bark · court · date · tube · mine · lean · stem · press

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. press — newspapers
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. court — of law
  5. stem — to come from
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. tube — a container
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. mine — for digging
  13. court — for sport
  14. tube — the underground
  15. date — the fruit
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. lean — thin
  20. bark — to shout
  21. press — to push
  22. lean — to bend
  23. press — a publisher
  24. court — of a king

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