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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. press — a publisher
  3. object — to protest
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. cell — in biology
  7. object — an aim
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. hand — in cards
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. press — to push
  14. object — a thing
  15. cell — a phone
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. bear — the animal
  18. capital — a city
  19. bear — the animal
  20. capital — money
  21. press — newspapers
  22. hand — help
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. wave — of the sea

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