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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. ground — a position
  3. land — ground
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. ground — the earth
  7. snap — to click
  8. cap — a hat
  9. shower — rain
  10. ground — crushed
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. cap — of ice
  13. land — a country
  14. press — newspapers
  15. bank — of a river
  16. cap — a lid
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. shower — to wash
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. bank — for money
  21. kick — in football
  22. bank — for money
  23. press — a publisher
  24. land — to come down

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