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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: mate · spring · press · clip · mug · land · mouse · pound

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. pound — a weight
  4. land — a country
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. clip — to cut
  7. mug — a face
  8. mug — a cup
  9. mate — a partner
  10. press — to push
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. mate — to breed
  13. clip — for paper
  14. spring — of water
  15. land — ground
  16. land — to come down
  17. mate — a friend
  18. mug — to rob
  19. spring — the season
  20. press — newspapers
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. spring — a coil
  23. clip — a video
  24. press — a publisher

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