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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. object — to protest
  4. court — of a king
  5. object — an aim
  6. press — to push
  7. press — a publisher
  8. object — a thing
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. court — of law
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. chair — a leader
  15. chip — for betting
  16. court — for sport
  17. chip — to eat
  18. press — newspapers

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