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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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Word bank
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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. press — to push
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. press — newspapers
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. spring — a coil
  7. rush — hurry
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. game — wild animals
  12. spring — of water
  13. cap — a hat
  14. fork — in a road
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. cap — of ice
  20. capital — money
  21. cap — a lid
  22. press — a publisher
  23. spring — the season
  24. capital — a city

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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