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

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. spring — of water
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. press — to push
  5. spring — a coil
  6. spring — the season
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. vault — a safe
  11. press — newspapers
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. press — a publisher
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. dip — to sink
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. fall — the season
  18. pound — a weight
  19. fall — to drop
  20. capital — money
  21. rush — hurry
  22. fall — to drop
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. capital — a city

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