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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. hand — help
  3. tear — to rip
  4. net — in sport
  5. press — newspapers
  6. hand — in cards
  7. press — to push
  8. club — a group
  9. dip — to sink
  10. tear — from crying
  11. drill — the tool
  12. club — for golf
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. net — after costs
  16. tear — from crying
  17. net — for catching
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. drill — army training
  23. press — a publisher
  24. club — for dancing

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