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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. cap — a hat
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. press — to push
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. mine — for digging
  11. press — newspapers
  12. pound — a weight
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. cap — of ice
  15. cap — a lid
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. press — a publisher

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