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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: land · press · suit · ground · snap · capital · straw · can

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. ground — a position
  4. land — ground
  5. can — a tin
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. land — to come down
  8. capital — money
  9. ground — crushed
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. suit — to fit
  13. suit — clothes
  14. land — a country
  15. snap — to click
  16. press — a publisher
  17. can — a tin
  18. press — newspapers
  19. can — to be able to
  20. suit — in cards
  21. capital — a city
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. ground — the earth
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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