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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. tube — a container
  6. press — to push
  7. key — the most important part
  8. stand — to bear
  9. key — for a lock
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. key — in music
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — an illness
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. cold — not warm
  17. press — newspapers
  18. cell — in biology
  19. cell — a phone
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. tube — the underground
  24. ruler — a monarch

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