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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: cap · fan · kick · press · spell · prune · dip · hand

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. press — to push
  4. spell — magic
  5. cap — of ice
  6. hand — help
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. prune — to trim
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. spell — a short time
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. press — newspapers
  13. dip — to sink
  14. hand — in cards
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. press — a publisher
  17. spell — letters
  18. cap — a lid
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. cap — a hat
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. kick — in football
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. prune — to trim

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