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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: press · wake · perch · snap · arm · pitch · field · tear

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. press — newspapers
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. press — to push
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. perch — the fish
  9. press — a publisher
  10. wake — a trail
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. field — farmland
  13. pitch — completely
  14. tear — from crying
  15. snap — to click
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. field — for sport
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. field — a subject
  24. tear — to rip

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