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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. swing — to play on
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. last — to go on
  5. press — a publisher
  6. last — final
  7. press — newspapers
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. bear — the animal
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. chair — a leader
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. last — finally
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. bear — the animal
  16. swing — in golf
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. press — to push

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