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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. wound — an injury
  4. present — the time now
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. club — for dancing
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. press — newspapers
  12. club — a group
  13. club — for golf
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. press — a publisher
  18. wound — an injury
  19. band — a music group
  20. present — a gift
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. present — there
  23. band — a ring
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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