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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: scale · press · saw · drill · pound · bear · fork · content

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. saw — the tool
  3. pound — a weight
  4. saw — the tool
  5. scale — in music
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. scale — size or range
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. bear — the animal
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. drill — a practice
  12. drill — the tool
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. press — newspapers
  17. bear — the animal
  18. press — to push
  19. content — happy
  20. drill — army training
  21. content — the amount
  22. fork — in a road
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. bear — to put up with

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