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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. rush — hurry
  5. spring — the season
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. press — newspapers
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — moving air
  10. press — a publisher
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. drill — a practice
  13. drill — army training
  14. drill — the tool
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. press — to push
  18. spring — of water
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. wax — to grow
  22. pitch — completely
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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