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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. press — a publisher
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. squash — to crush
  7. capital — a city
  8. cold — not warm
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. dip — to sink
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. squash — the sport
  15. vault — a safe
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. wind — moving air
  18. capital — money
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. press — newspapers
  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