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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 116 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: snap · press · stick · cue · prune · sharp · field · bark

  1. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. cue — a signal
  4. cue — a hint
  5. press — to push
  6. field — a subject
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — to trim
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. field — for sport
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. press — a publisher
  21. cue — for pool
  22. field — farmland
  23. sharp — clever
  24. snap — to click

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