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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: press · kick · nail · wind · pound · face · prune · chip

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  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. prune — to trim
  2. prune — to trim
  3. kick — in football
  4. chip — to eat
  5. pound — a weight
  6. face — part of the head
  7. press — a publisher
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. wind — moving air
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. face — to point toward
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. chip — for betting
  16. face — to confront
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. press — to push
  20. wind — moving air
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. kick — with a leg
  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