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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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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: bank · cap · wind · fork · date · snap · press · wound

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. cap — a hat
  3. press — newspapers
  4. snap — to click
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. press — a publisher
  7. bank — of a river
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. bank — for money
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. bank — for money
  15. wound — an injury
  16. fork — in a road
  17. date — the fruit
  18. wind — moving air
  19. cap — a lid
  20. wound — an injury
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. press — to push

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