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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: mug · rush · tear · bass · cap · content · press · kick

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. content — the amount
  3. cap — a hat
  4. press — a publisher
  5. bass — the fish
  6. kick — in football
  7. mug — to rob
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. tear — from crying
  10. mug — a face
  11. mug — a cup
  12. rush — hurry
  13. content — happy
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. cap — of ice
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. tear — from crying
  19. press — to push
  20. bass — low music
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. press — newspapers
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. tear — to rip

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