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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. game — wild animals
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. press — newspapers
  5. degree — temperature
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. rule — government
  11. suit — in cards
  12. press — to push
  13. rule — a law
  14. game — a match
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. row — a line
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. suit — clothes
  20. degree — an amount
  21. press — a publisher
  22. row — to paddle
  23. suit — to fit
  24. degree — from a university

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