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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: prune · wax · bark · press · present · scale · rush · lean

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. present — there
  3. scale — in music
  4. press — newspapers
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. rush — hurry
  7. lean — to bend
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. prune — to trim
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. present — the time now
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bark — to shout
  17. press — to push
  18. wax — to grow
  19. lean — thin
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. press — a publisher
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. scale — size or range

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