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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. drill — a practice
  4. chair — a leader
  5. drill — army training
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. degree — an amount
  8. degree — temperature
  9. field — for sport
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — farmland
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. press — to push
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. press — newspapers
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. degree — from a university
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. drill — the tool
  21. lean — to bend
  22. lean — thin
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. press — a publisher

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