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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: board · scale · press · land · bear · spring · bowl · row

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. spring — the season
  4. land — to come down
  5. board — to get on
  6. board — a committee
  7. spring — a coil
  8. spring — of water
  9. bear — the animal
  10. land — a country
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. press — a publisher
  15. bear — the animal
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. scale — in music
  18. row — to paddle
  19. scale — size or range
  20. press — to push
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. land — ground
  23. row — a line
  24. press — newspapers

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