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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. spring — of water
  4. fall — to drop
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. press — a publisher
  10. deal — to handle
  11. wound — an injury
  12. spring — the season
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. game — a match
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. fall — the season
  17. game — wild animals
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. spring — a coil
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. press — to push
  22. press — newspapers
  23. fall — to drop
  24. wound — an injury

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