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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. march — the month
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. squash — to crush
  5. content — the amount
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. spell — magic
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. press — to push
  10. press — a publisher
  11. spell — letters
  12. branch — a division
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. march — music
  15. content — happy
  16. press — newspapers
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. march — the month
  20. squash — the sport
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. straw — a straw man

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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