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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 120 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 cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. can — a tin
  3. cell — a phone
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. press — to push
  6. cell — in biology
  7. can — to be able to
  8. can — a tin
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. tear — to rip
  11. cue — for pool
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. press — a publisher
  14. tear — from crying
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. cue — a signal
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. press — newspapers
  22. cue — a hint
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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