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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 stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. press — newspapers
  3. can — to be able to
  4. fall — the season
  5. swing — to play on
  6. swing — in golf
  7. march — music
  8. press — a publisher
  9. band — a ring
  10. swing — music
  11. fall — to drop
  12. spring — the season
  13. band — a music group
  14. bound — obliged
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. bound — certain
  17. spring — of water
  18. bound — tied together
  19. spring — a coil
  20. can — a tin
  21. march — the month
  22. press — to push
  23. march — the month
  24. can — a tin

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