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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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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. press — to push
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. rush — hurry
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. press — a publisher
  8. press — newspapers
  9. pound — a weight
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. content — happy
  12. march — the month
  13. march — music
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. content — the amount
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. march — the month
  18. pound — to hit hard

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