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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. David sat on the ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. swing — to play on
  3. land — ground
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lean — thin
  6. land — to come down
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. saw — the tool
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. saw — the tool
  11. lie — to recline
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mine — for digging
  14. press — a publisher
  15. land — a country
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. swing — music
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. lean — to bend
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. press — newspapers
  24. swing — in golf

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