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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  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. stand — on your feet
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. press — a publisher
  5. cell — in biology
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. pass — a permit
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. face — to confront
  10. cell — a phone
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. face — part of the head
  13. face — to point toward
  14. bat — the animal
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. press — to push
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. press — newspapers
  19. stand — to bear
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. pass — to succeed
  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