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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. press — a publisher
  3. spring — of water
  4. march — the month
  5. last — to go on
  6. fine — high quality
  7. march — music
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. suit — clothes
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. spring — a coil
  12. present — the time now
  13. press — to push
  14. suit — in cards
  15. spring — the season
  16. last — finally
  17. present — a gift
  18. fine — all right
  19. march — the month
  20. suit — to fit
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. last — final
  23. present — there
  24. press — newspapers

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