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

Word bank: cap · bowl · stick · pound · mine · press · spring · tear

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. pound — a weight
  6. spring — the season
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. tear — from crying
  10. cap — a hat
  11. spring — of water
  12. tear — to rip
  13. cap — of ice
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. press — to push
  16. spring — a coil
  17. press — newspapers
  18. press — a publisher
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. cap — a lid
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. tear — from crying

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