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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: stem · rush · dip · press · capital · spring · bore · drill

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. stem — to come from
  3. rush — hurry
  4. spring — a coil
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. drill — the tool
  7. bore — to tire
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. capital — a city
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. press — a publisher
  12. drill — a practice
  13. dip — to sink
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. press — newspapers
  16. drill — army training
  17. capital — money
  18. spring — of water
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. press — to push
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. bore — to drill

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