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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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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: hand · march · press · lash · cap · patient · key · wave

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. march — the month
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. press — newspapers
  6. key — for a lock
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. press — to push
  10. march — the month
  11. hand — help
  12. key — the most important part
  13. hand — in cards
  14. march — music
  15. cap — a lid
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. cap — a hat
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. cap — of ice
  24. key — in music

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