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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. press — to push
  5. press — a publisher
  6. track — a song
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. press — newspapers
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. track — a path
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. tear — to rip
  15. march — the month
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying
  19. deal — to handle
  20. march — music
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. track — to keep track
  24. bat — the animal

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