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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. ground — a position
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. press — to push
  5. squash — to crush
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. press — newspapers
  10. cap — a lid
  11. ground — the earth
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. present — a gift
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. squash — the sport
  17. cap — of ice
  18. ground — crushed
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. present — the time now
  21. wind — moving air
  22. cap — a hat
  23. press — a publisher
  24. lie — to recline

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