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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.

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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. firm — decided
  4. spring — the season
  5. fork — in a road
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. capital — a city
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. spring — a coil
  11. capital — money
  12. tear — from crying
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. tear — to rip
  15. tear — from crying
  16. spring — of water
  17. press — newspapers
  18. firm — a company
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. press — a publisher
  22. firm — steady
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. dip — to sink

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