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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 function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. cold — an illness
  5. spell — letters
  6. lean — to bend
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. craft — a skill
  10. spell — magic
  11. capital — money
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. capital — a city
  14. cold — not warm
  15. stock — shares
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. wake — a trail
  18. press — a publisher
  19. craft — boats
  20. stock — goods
  21. spell — a short time
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. lean — thin
  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