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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 116 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's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bound — tied together
  3. present — there
  4. race — the arms race
  5. mine — for digging
  6. march — music
  7. bound — certain
  8. press — to push
  9. press — newspapers
  10. wind — moving air
  11. race — humankind
  12. press — a publisher
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. wind — moving air
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. march — the month
  17. present — a gift
  18. march — the month
  19. bound — obliged
  20. race — a contest
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. wound — an injury
  23. present — the time now
  24. wind — to turn a key

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