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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: press · net · leaves · bark · mark · bat · bound · safe

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. press — to push
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bound — obliged
  7. net — for catching
  8. net — in sport
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. mark — a trace
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bound — certain
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bound — tied together
  17. mark — a grade
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. press — newspapers
  20. net — after costs
  21. bat — the animal
  22. press — a publisher
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. safe — out of danger

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