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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. pit — a hole
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. pit — in a race
  8. tube — the underground
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. squash — the sport
  11. capital — money
  12. wind — moving air
  13. capital — a city
  14. press — newspapers
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. press — a publisher
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. squash — to crush
  22. tube — a container
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. tube — in a tire

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