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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  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. fan — to cool the air
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. bank — for money
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. pound — a weight
  7. stem — to come from
  8. bank — of a river
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. capital — a city
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. game — wild animals
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. press — to push
  15. kick — in football
  16. press — a publisher
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. game — a match
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. press — newspapers
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bank — for money
  23. kick — with a leg
  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