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

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. band — a ring
  5. capital — a city
  6. press — a publisher
  7. roll — a list
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. scale — size or range
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. prune — to trim
  12. press — newspapers
  13. stem — to come from
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. band — a music group
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. prune — to trim
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. press — to push
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. scale — in music
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. capital — money

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