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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.

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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 was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  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. mine — an explosive
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. press — to push
  4. mine — for digging
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. chip — to eat
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. wind — moving air
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. pit — in a race
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. pass — a permit
  14. march — the month
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. march — the month
  18. chip — for betting
  19. pit — a hole
  20. wind — moving air
  21. march — music
  22. wake — a trail
  23. press — newspapers
  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