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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  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. wind — moving air
  2. present — the time now
  3. season — in sport
  4. last — finally
  5. mark — a trace
  6. present — there
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — final
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. season — of the year
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. present — a gift
  15. wind — moving air
  16. press — to push
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. mark — a grade
  19. pop — soda
  20. pop — music
  21. pop — to visit
  22. press — newspapers
  23. snap — to click
  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