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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. kick — in football
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. stem — to come from
  6. swing — to play on
  7. press — a publisher
  8. face — to confront
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. swing — music
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. press — to push
  13. wind — moving air
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. swing — in golf
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. face — to point toward
  20. chair — a leader
  21. face — part of the head
  22. press — newspapers
  23. hide — to keep secret
  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