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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 120 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: present · press · stem · land · leaves · mine · pitcher · hand

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. press — newspapers
  6. present — there
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. mine — for digging
  9. present — a gift
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. land — to come down
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. land — ground
  14. hand — in cards
  15. press — a publisher
  16. land — a country
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. hand — help
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. stem — to come from
  21. present — the time now
  22. press — to push
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. pitcher — a jug

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