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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 116 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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. land — to come down
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. land — ground
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. key — the most important part
  8. current — electric
  9. press — a publisher
  10. key — for a lock
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. land — a country
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. key — in music
  18. current — of water
  19. press — to push
  20. can — to be able to
  21. current — happening now
  22. bat — the animal
  23. press — newspapers
  24. can — a tin

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