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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. cold — not warm
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. chair — a leader
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. press — a publisher
  13. cold — an illness
  14. press — newspapers
  15. rush — hurry
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. press — to push
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. wind — moving air
  23. fine — all right
  24. fine — high quality

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