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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: cold · leaves · press · hand · pound · bowl · prune · craft

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. hand — help
  3. prune — to trim
  4. hand — in cards
  5. press — a publisher
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. press — to push
  8. cold — an illness
  9. press — newspapers
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. craft — a skill
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. cold — not warm
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. pound — a weight
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. prune — to trim
  24. pound — for dogs

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