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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. fall — to drop
  3. press — to push
  4. saw — the tool
  5. present — there
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. fall — the season
  8. present — a gift
  9. march — the month
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. fall — to drop
  14. march — music
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. march — the month
  17. wind — moving air
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. saw — the tool
  20. press — a publisher
  21. wind — moving air
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. pass — a permit
  24. press — newspapers

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