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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: jam · arm · press · perch · wake · hand · tear · firm

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. tear — from crying
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. tear — from crying
  7. firm — decided
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. hand — help
  10. press — to push
  11. firm — steady
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. hand — in cards
  14. perch — the fish
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. firm — a company
  17. press — a publisher
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. wake — a trail
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. tear — to rip
  23. press — newspapers
  24. perch — for a bird

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