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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. rash — hasty
  3. mine — for digging
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. fall — to drop
  6. sharp — clever
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. press — newspapers
  9. kick — in football
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. capital — a city
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. rash — a series
  14. capital — money
  15. press — a publisher
  16. fall — to drop
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. cap — of ice
  19. cap — a lid
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. cap — a hat
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. fall — the season
  24. press — to push

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