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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 120 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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. present — there
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. present — the time now
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. cold — not warm
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. press — to push
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. mine — for digging
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. pass — a permit
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. present — a gift
  21. press — newspapers
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. press — a publisher

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