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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: squash · press · bat · ground · stand · root · band · cabinet

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. press — a publisher
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. ground — a position
  6. root — of a plant
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. ground — the earth
  9. band — a ring
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. press — newspapers
  12. squash — the sport
  13. bat — the animal
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. stand — to bear
  16. root — of a word
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. squash — to crush
  19. root — the cause
  20. band — a music group
  21. press — to push
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. stand — for spectators

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