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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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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: cold · bowl · vault · dip · cap · mark · ground · press

  1. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. ground — crushed
  3. cap — a hat
  4. cold — an illness
  5. vault — a safe
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. ground — the earth
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cold — not warm
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. mark — a trace
  15. press — newspapers
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. mark — a grade
  19. press — to push
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. ground — a position
  22. cap — a lid
  23. dip — to sink
  24. press — a publisher

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