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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. game — wild animals
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — money
  6. chest — a box
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. game — a match
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bulb — for light
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. chest — of your body
  14. bulb — for light
  15. wind — moving air
  16. press — a publisher
  17. press — to push
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. press — newspapers
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. wave — with your hand

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