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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. lean — thin
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. chair — a leader
  5. lean — to bend
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. press — a publisher
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. cold — an illness
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. cold — not warm
  13. press — newspapers
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. rash — hasty
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rash — a series
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. press — to push
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. chair — to sit on

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