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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: wind · snap · scale · lean · leaves · stem · press · trunk

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. stem — to come from
  3. lean — thin
  4. press — to push
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. lean — to bend
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. press — newspapers
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. wind — moving air
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. snap — to click
  17. scale — in music
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. scale — size or range
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. leaves — to go away

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