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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. suit — in cards
  3. squash — the sport
  4. press — to push
  5. squash — to crush
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. tear — to rip
  10. bass — the fish
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. bass — low music
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. land — to come down
  17. press — a publisher
  18. land — a country
  19. suit — to fit
  20. tear — from crying
  21. land — ground
  22. press — newspapers
  23. suit — clothes
  24. bowl — to roll

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