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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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. season — of the year
  3. present — there
  4. race — a contest
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. saw — the tool
  7. race — the arms race
  8. press — to push
  9. file — a line of people
  10. saw — the tool
  11. press — a publisher
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. present — the time now
  15. deal — to handle
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. press — newspapers
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. season — in sport
  21. file — a tool
  22. present — a gift
  23. file — a document
  24. race — humankind

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