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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: game · lean · row · cap · press · ground · hand · nail

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. lean — thin
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. game — a match
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. press — a publisher
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. ground — the earth
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. cap — of ice
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. row — a line
  13. row — to paddle
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. cap — a hat
  16. lean — to bend
  17. hand — help
  18. cap — a lid
  19. press — to push
  20. ground — crushed
  21. press — newspapers
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. game — wild animals
  24. ground — a position

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