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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 function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. charge — electricity
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. file — a document
  6. capital — a city
  7. kid — child
  8. file — a line of people
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. file — a tool
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. press — to push
  14. kid — to tease
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. charge — in control
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. charge — a price
  19. press — a publisher
  20. bark — to shout
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. capital — money
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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