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

Word bank: straw · press · root · pass · board · wind · season · wave

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. season — of the year
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. root — of a plant
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. board — a committee
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. board — to get on
  12. press — to push
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. wind — moving air
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. wind — moving air
  18. root — of a word
  19. season — in sport
  20. root — the cause
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. pass — a permit
  24. press — newspapers

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