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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. capital — money
  5. lie — to recline
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. press — to push
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. rest — what's left
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. capital — a city
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. press — a publisher
  14. rest — a break
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. mine — for digging
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. squash — to crush
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. rest — what's left
  22. deal — to handle
  23. press — newspapers
  24. lie — an untruth

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