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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: can · bay · pitcher · club · field · press · spring · wake

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. can — a tin
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. spring — of water
  7. spring — the season
  8. club — for dancing
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. spring — a coil
  11. press — to push
  12. club — for golf
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. wake — a trail
  15. club — a group
  16. press — newspapers
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. can — a tin
  20. field — farmland
  21. field — a subject
  22. can — to be able to
  23. field — for sport
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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