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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 120 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: rock · press · snap · ground · row · hand · capital · mate

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. snap — to click
  3. mate — a friend
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. press — a publisher
  8. hand — help
  9. press — newspapers
  10. ground — the earth
  11. mate — a partner
  12. rock — music
  13. row — a line
  14. rock — a stone
  15. capital — money
  16. mate — to breed
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. ground — crushed
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. press — to push
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. ground — a position
  23. hand — in cards
  24. capital — a city

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