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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 thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. tube — a container
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. press — to push
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. press — a publisher
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. press — newspapers
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. spring — of water
  18. tube — the underground
  19. spring — a coil
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. spring — the season
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. hide — to keep secret

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