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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. rash — hasty
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. row — a line
  6. press — newspapers
  7. tear — to rip
  8. wind — moving air
  9. rash — a series
  10. spring — the season
  11. tear — from crying
  12. press — a publisher
  13. spring — of water
  14. row — to paddle
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. press — to push
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. wind — moving air
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. tear — from crying
  24. spring — a coil

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