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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. mark — a trace
  3. season — of the year
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. mark — a grade
  6. cell — a phone
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. press — newspapers
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. mine — for digging
  15. rest — a break
  16. season — in sport
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bat — the animal
  21. press — a publisher
  22. rest — what's left
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. press — to push

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