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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: spring · mark · ground · press · field · tube · bound · pop

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. pop — music
  3. ground — crushed
  4. field — for sport
  5. mark — a grade
  6. field — a subject
  7. spring — the season
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. spring — of water
  10. mark — a trace
  11. spring — a coil
  12. press — to push
  13. ground — a position
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. pop — to visit
  16. press — newspapers
  17. tube — a container
  18. ground — the earth
  19. pop — soda
  20. bound — tied together
  21. field — farmland
  22. tube — the underground
  23. bound — obliged
  24. bound — certain

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