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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: bay · spring · snap · press · hand · net · pound · rash

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. press — to push
  3. spring — of water
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. snap — to click
  6. hand — in cards
  7. hand — help
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. press — a publisher
  13. spring — a coil
  14. press — newspapers
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. spring — the season
  18. rash — hasty
  19. net — for catching
  20. net — after costs
  21. pound — a weight
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. rash — a series
  24. net — in sport

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