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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 120 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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. press — a publisher
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. mine — for digging
  14. press — newspapers
  15. object — a thing
  16. object — an aim
  17. chip — to eat
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. chip — for betting
  20. rock — music
  21. rock — a stone
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. bat — the animal
  24. object — to protest

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