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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. chest — a box
  3. press — to push
  4. board — a committee
  5. bear — the animal
  6. object — an aim
  7. object — to protest
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. chest — of your body
  16. bear — the animal
  17. wake — a trail
  18. press — newspapers
  19. object — a thing
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. cell — in biology
  22. press — a publisher
  23. board — to get on
  24. chest — of your body

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