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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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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. 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. wind — moving air
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. bear — the animal
  4. wind — moving air
  5. firm — a company
  6. bear — the animal
  7. chest — of your body
  8. firm — steady
  9. kid — child
  10. firm — decided
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — a box
  14. kid — to tease
  15. press — a publisher
  16. press — to push
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. 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