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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 116 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: press · stock · capital · cap · lie · sharp · bulb · spring

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. press — newspapers
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. cap — of ice
  5. sharp — clever
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bulb — for light
  10. stock — shares
  11. spring — of water
  12. capital — a city
  13. press — a publisher
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. stock — goods
  16. spring — a coil
  17. lie — to recline
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. cap — a hat
  20. capital — money
  21. cap — a lid
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. spring — the season
  24. lie — an untruth

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