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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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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: stem · cap · rest · bark · stick · press · arm · shower

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. cap — of ice
  3. cap — a lid
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. bark — to shout
  8. stem — to come from
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. rest — what's left
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. cap — a hat
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. rest — a break
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. rest — what's left
  17. press — newspapers
  18. press — to push
  19. shower — to wash
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. shower — rain
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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