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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. degree — an amount
  3. cap — a lid
  4. degree — from a university
  5. press — a publisher
  6. swing — music
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. swing — to play on
  9. tube — the underground
  10. press — newspapers
  11. scale — size or range
  12. tube — a container
  13. march — the month
  14. scale — in music
  15. swing — in golf
  16. march — music
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. cap — of ice
  20. march — the month
  21. degree — temperature
  22. wind — moving air
  23. cap — a hat
  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