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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.

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

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. object — an aim
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. wind — moving air
  7. cue — a signal
  8. object — to protest
  9. press — newspapers
  10. last — finally
  11. press — a publisher
  12. press — to push
  13. cue — a hint
  14. wind — moving air
  15. last — to go on
  16. deal — to handle
  17. object — a thing
  18. cue — for pool

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