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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mate · arm · press · prune · club · rush · mine · wound

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. club — for dancing
  3. mate — a friend
  4. prune — to trim
  5. mate — a partner
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. wound — an injury
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. press — a publisher
  10. rush — hurry
  11. prune — to trim
  12. club — a group
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. wound — an injury
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. press — newspapers
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. press — to push
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mine — for digging

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