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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 124 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. press — newspapers
  5. press — to push
  6. club — for dancing
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. press — a publisher
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. spell — letters
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. spell — magic
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. wind — moving air
  15. sharp — clever
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. club — a group
  18. spell — a short time
  19. branch — a division
  20. club — for golf
  21. wind — moving air
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. branch — of a bank

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