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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: patient · spring · press · rest · object · wind

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. rest — a break
  4. object — a thing
  5. press — to push
  6. wind — moving air
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. spring — the season
  9. rest — what's left
  10. object — an aim
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. object — to protest
  13. press — newspapers
  14. spring — a coil
  15. spring — of water
  16. press — a publisher
  17. rest — what's left
  18. 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