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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 116 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: row · lie · spring · plane · saw · press · pitcher · capital

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. spring — a coil
  3. lie — to recline
  4. press — a publisher
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. spring — the season
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. saw — the tool
  11. row — to paddle
  12. capital — money
  13. plane — a tool
  14. press — newspapers
  15. row — a line
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. press — to push
  18. saw — the tool
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. capital — a city
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. capital — a big letter

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