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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. press — to push
  6. last — final
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. shower — to wash
  10. shower — rain
  11. last — finally
  12. wind — moving air
  13. press — newspapers
  14. firm — steady
  15. last — to go on
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. firm — a company
  18. firm — decided
  19. pitch — completely
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. toast — bread
  23. press — a publisher
  24. wind — moving air

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