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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 · leaves · chest · tube · pit · club · prune · fall

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. pit — in a race
  3. chest — of your body
  4. club — a group
  5. press — a publisher
  6. club — for dancing
  7. prune — to trim
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. chest — of your body
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. fall — to drop
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. chest — a box
  15. press — to push
  16. prune — to trim
  17. tube — a container
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. fall — to drop
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. tube — the underground
  22. fall — the season
  23. press — newspapers
  24. pit — a hole

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