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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cap — a hat
  5. tear — to rip
  6. spring — of water
  7. press — newspapers
  8. press — a publisher
  9. cell — a phone
  10. press — to push
  11. cap — of ice
  12. cell — in biology
  13. tear — from crying
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. key — for a lock
  19. key — in music
  20. tear — from crying
  21. plane — a tool
  22. spring — a coil
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. key — the most important part

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