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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. suit — in cards
  3. suit — to fit
  4. wind — moving air
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. press — a publisher
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. wind — moving air
  11. press — to push
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — from crying
  14. spring — the season
  15. chair — a leader
  16. press — newspapers
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. tear — to rip
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. suit — clothes
  21. spring — a coil
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. calf — a young animal

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