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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 124 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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. wind — moving air
  3. ground — the earth
  4. root — of a word
  5. firm — a company
  6. firm — decided
  7. firm — steady
  8. root — of a plant
  9. root — the cause
  10. last — finally
  11. press — to push
  12. ground — a position
  13. wind — moving air
  14. dip — to sink
  15. last — to go on
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. ground — crushed
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. press — a publisher
  21. press — newspapers
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. last — final
  24. wind — to turn a key

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