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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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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: chair · toast · arm · stick · press · field · rest · bark

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. field — farmland
  5. press — a publisher
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. rest — a break
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. press — newspapers
  11. field — a subject
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. field — for sport
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. press — to push
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. toast — bread
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. rest — what's left
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. chair — a leader
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. rest — what's left

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