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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. court — of law
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. plane — a tool
  7. spell — a short time
  8. press — newspapers
  9. spell — magic
  10. court — for sport
  11. fork — in a road
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. court — of a king
  17. spell — letters
  18. cold — an illness
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. press — a publisher
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. cabinet — ministers

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