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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 120 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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. wound — an injury
  3. press — to push
  4. press — a publisher
  5. file — a line of people
  6. file — a tool
  7. file — a document
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. charge — in control
  11. charge — a price
  12. rock — music
  13. track — a path
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. club — a group
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. wound — an injury
  18. track — to keep track
  19. charge — electricity
  20. club — for dancing
  21. club — for golf
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. press — newspapers
  24. rock — a stone

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