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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: saw · root · pop · press · mine · vault · spring · shower

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. mine — for digging
  3. spring — of water
  4. vault — a safe
  5. spring — the season
  6. press — to push
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. pop — music
  9. press — newspapers
  10. root — of a plant
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. saw — the tool
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. root — the cause
  15. saw — the tool
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. pop — soda
  18. shower — to wash
  19. root — of a word
  20. spring — a coil
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. shower — rain
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. press — a publisher

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