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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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. squash — the sport
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. cue — a signal
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. cue — for pool
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. chair — a leader
  12. cue — a hint
  13. wound — an injury
  14. deal — to handle
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. current — electric
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. press — a publisher
  19. current — of water
  20. squash — to crush
  21. wound — an injury
  22. press — to push
  23. current — happening now
  24. press — newspapers

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