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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 116 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.

Make a worksheet

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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. degree — from a university
  3. press — to push
  4. press — a publisher
  5. staff — employees
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. staff — employees
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. press — newspapers
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. degree — an amount
  14. wind — moving air
  15. degree — temperature
  16. staff — a stick
  17. chair — a leader
  18. wind — to turn a key

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