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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. stand — to bear
  3. net — in sport
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. net — after costs
  7. staff — employees
  8. press — to push
  9. drill — a practice
  10. wind — moving air
  11. press — newspapers
  12. staff — employees
  13. staff — a stick
  14. wind — moving air
  15. press — a publisher
  16. drill — army training
  17. mine — for digging
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. craft — boats
  20. net — for catching
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. drill — the tool
  24. craft — a skill

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