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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. press — a publisher
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. mark — a trace
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. sharp — clever
  7. kick — in football
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. hand — help
  11. game — a match
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. press — newspapers
  16. game — wild animals
  17. mark — a grade
  18. hand — in cards
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. hand — part of the body
  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