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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: stick · spring · cap · current · press · stand · chair · mate

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. mate — to breed
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. current — electric
  5. press — a publisher
  6. cap — a lid
  7. mate — a friend
  8. cap — of ice
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. press — to push
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. cap — a hat
  13. mate — a partner
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. press — newspapers
  17. spring — of water
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. chair — a leader
  20. spring — a coil
  21. spring — the season
  22. current — of water
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. current — happening now

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