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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. press — newspapers
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. dip — to sink
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. roll — a cake
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. press — a publisher
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. press — to push
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. cell — in biology
  20. lie — to recline
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. game — wild animals
  23. cell — a phone
  24. roll — a list

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