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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 · press · fine · cue · bay · chest · net · present

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. chest — of your body
  3. net — after costs
  4. press — a publisher
  5. present — there
  6. cue — for pool
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. net — in sport
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. present — the time now
  12. press — to push
  13. fine — all right
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bark — to shout
  16. net — for catching
  17. chest — a box
  18. cue — a hint
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. fine — high quality
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. cue — a signal
  24. press — newspapers

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