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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: cold · date · cap · foot · press · drill · wake · mug

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cap — of ice
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. mug — to rob
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. drill — the tool
  7. press — a publisher
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cold — an illness
  10. drill — army training
  11. wake — a trail
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. cold — not warm
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. drill — a practice
  17. mug — a cup
  18. press — to push
  19. mug — a face
  20. foot — a measure
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. date — the fruit
  24. press — newspapers

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