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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. race — a contest
  3. track — to keep track
  4. press — to push
  5. net — for catching
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. race — humankind
  8. track — a path
  9. ground — a position
  10. ground — crushed
  11. firm — steady
  12. press — a publisher
  13. file — a tool
  14. file — a line of people
  15. track — a song
  16. race — the arms race
  17. press — newspapers
  18. file — a document
  19. net — after costs
  20. firm — a company
  21. ground — the earth
  22. net — in sport
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. firm — decided

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