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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 120 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: safe · mate · capital · cell · ground · plane · pound · press

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  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. safe — out of danger
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. press — to push
  4. ground — a position
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. mate — a partner
  7. capital — money
  8. ground — the earth
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. plane — a tool
  11. cell — in biology
  12. capital — a city
  13. mate — a friend
  14. cell — a phone
  15. pound — a weight
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. mate — to breed
  18. ground — crushed
  19. press — newspapers
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. safe — out of danger
  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