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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 sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. wind — moving air
  5. bear — the animal
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. march — the month
  8. prune — to trim
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. bear — the animal
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. wind — moving air
  13. press — a publisher
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. march — music
  17. capital — a city
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. prune — to trim
  20. march — the month
  21. capital — money
  22. press — newspapers
  23. press — to push
  24. capital — a big letter

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