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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: press · kick · wave · land · cap · swing

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. land — to come down
  3. swing — to play on
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. press — to push
  6. swing — music
  7. land — a country
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. cap — a hat
  10. swing — in golf
  11. land — ground
  12. kick — in football
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cap — a lid
  15. press — a publisher
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. press — newspapers

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