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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. march — the month
  3. capital — money
  4. press — a publisher
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. capital — a city
  8. march — music
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. stock — shares
  13. deal — to handle
  14. wake — a trail
  15. stock — goods
  16. press — newspapers
  17. shower — to wash
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. saw — the tool
  21. march — the month
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. saw — the tool
  24. press — to push

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