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

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. suit — to fit
  3. press — a publisher
  4. bat — the animal
  5. wind — moving air
  6. press — newspapers
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. wind — moving air
  10. suit — in cards
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. suit — clothes
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. degree — an amount
  17. pass — a permit
  18. bark — to shout
  19. rash — hasty
  20. degree — from a university
  21. rash — a series
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. degree — temperature
  24. press — to push

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