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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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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: cap · press · race · cold · ground · pass · root · firm

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. press — to push
  3. root — of a word
  4. firm — decided
  5. race — the arms race
  6. cap — a hat
  7. cap — of ice
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. pass — a permit
  10. cold — not warm
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. root — of a plant
  13. race — a contest
  14. cold — an illness
  15. race — humankind
  16. press — a publisher
  17. cap — a lid
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. ground — crushed
  20. ground — a position
  21. firm — a company
  22. press — newspapers
  23. root — the cause
  24. ground — the earth

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