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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 120 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: cold · lash · scale · file · stand · stick · press · wind

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. file — a tool
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. cold — an illness
  7. press — to push
  8. file — a document
  9. scale — size or range
  10. cold — not warm
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. scale — in music
  15. wind — moving air
  16. stand — to bear
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. press — newspapers
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. file — a line of people
  24. press — a publisher

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