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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. press — a publisher
  3. press — newspapers
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. press — to push
  8. pop — music
  9. cold — not warm
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. pop — to visit
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. pop — soda
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. cold — an illness
  18. stick — a piece of wood

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