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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: wind · deal · can · face · press · mine · cold · mouse

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. press — newspapers
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. press — a publisher
  6. face — to confront
  7. mine — for digging
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. face — to point toward
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. cold — an illness
  13. wind — moving air
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. can — to be able to
  19. face — part of the head
  20. can — a tin
  21. can — a tin
  22. press — to push
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. deal — to handle

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