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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. shower — to wash
  3. squash — to crush
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. shower — rain
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. saw — the tool
  9. press — to push
  10. saw — the tool
  11. squash — the sport
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. pitch — completely
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. key — the most important part
  18. key — for a lock
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. press — newspapers
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. key — in music
  23. scale — size or range
  24. press — a publisher

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