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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: spell · cabinet · press · leaves · bowl · wind · ground · tear

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. tear — from crying
  3. press — newspapers
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. spell — a short time
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. press — to push
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. press — a publisher
  14. ground — crushed
  15. ground — the earth
  16. wind — moving air
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. tear — from crying
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. wind — moving air
  21. ground — a position
  22. spell — letters
  23. spell — magic
  24. tear — to rip

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