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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 120 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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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: stick · rash · press · chest · mark · cell · prune · mate

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. rash — a series
  4. press — newspapers
  5. chest — of your body
  6. mark — a grade
  7. prune — to trim
  8. mate — a friend
  9. press — to push
  10. rash — hasty
  11. chest — of your body
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. mate — a partner
  14. press — a publisher
  15. mate — to breed
  16. cell — a phone
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. mark — a trace
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. chest — a box
  23. cell — in biology
  24. prune — the fruit

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