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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 · suit · cabinet · press · club · snap · stock · wound

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. wind — moving air
  3. suit — in cards
  4. stock — goods
  5. wind — moving air
  6. press — a publisher
  7. snap — to click
  8. press — newspapers
  9. wound — an injury
  10. suit — clothes
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. club — a group
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. club — for dancing
  19. club — for golf
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. stock — shares
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. wound — an injury
  24. suit — to fit

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