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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  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. game — wild animals
  2. band — a music group
  3. can — to be able to
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. can — a tin
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. press — to push
  11. wind — moving air
  12. land — ground
  13. band — a ring
  14. land — to come down
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. game — a match
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. wind — moving air
  20. land — a country
  21. can — a tin
  22. press — newspapers
  23. deal — to handle
  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