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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. spell — letters
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. mine — for digging
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. press — to push
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. pass — a permit
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. fork — in a road
  14. spell — a short time
  15. club — for dancing
  16. date — the fruit
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. club — for golf
  19. press — newspapers
  20. club — a group
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. press — a publisher
  24. spell — magic

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