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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: wind · stand · track · capital · jam · leaves · press · pound

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. pound — a weight
  3. track — to keep track
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. wind — moving air
  6. capital — a city
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. press — a publisher
  11. press — to push
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. press — newspapers
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. capital — money
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. track — a path
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. track — a song
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. stand — for spectators

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