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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wave · hide · game · bank · press · wind · sharp · bat

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. press — to push
  3. bank — for money
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. game — wild animals
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. game — a match
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. wind — moving air
  15. press — a publisher
  16. bank — of a river
  17. press — newspapers
  18. sharp — clever
  19. bat — the animal
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bank — for money

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