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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: pop · press · snap · shower · cap · scale · ground · date

  1. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. pop — to visit
  4. snap — to click
  5. ground — the earth
  6. cap — a hat
  7. scale — in music
  8. shower — to wash
  9. shower — rain
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. date — the fruit
  12. cap — of ice
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. scale — size or range
  16. press — to push
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. ground — crushed
  19. pop — music
  20. pop — soda
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. cap — a lid
  23. press — a publisher
  24. ground — a position

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