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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. march — the month
  3. current — happening now
  4. spring — a coil
  5. fine — high quality
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. fine — all right
  8. current — electric
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. press — to push
  11. spring — the season
  12. march — music
  13. current — of water
  14. press — newspapers
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. march — the month
  18. last — final
  19. press — a publisher
  20. spring — of water
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. last — to go on
  23. last — finally
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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