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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. branch — a division
  3. track — a song
  4. bound — tied together
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. bound — certain
  7. club — for dancing
  8. press — to push
  9. track — a path
  10. rule — government
  11. perch — the fish
  12. rule — a law
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. club — for golf
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. club — a group
  18. track — to keep track
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. bound — obliged
  23. press — a publisher
  24. press — newspapers

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