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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: fork · row · press · pop · snap · bank · spring · capital

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. bank — for money
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. pop — soda
  5. bank — of a river
  6. spring — the season
  7. press — newspapers
  8. press — a publisher
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. spring — a coil
  12. fork — in a road
  13. spring — of water
  14. row — to paddle
  15. pop — to visit
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. snap — to click
  18. capital — a city
  19. pop — music
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. bank — for money
  22. press — to push
  23. capital — money
  24. row — a line

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