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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. capital — a city
  4. press — to push
  5. cold — an illness
  6. capital — money
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. cold — not warm
  9. press — a publisher
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. bank — of a river
  12. rush — hurry
  13. snap — to click
  14. cap — a lid
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bank — for money
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. press — newspapers
  19. cap — of ice
  20. bank — for money
  21. bear — the animal
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. rush — a thrill

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