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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. band — a music group
  5. race — a contest
  6. cue — for pool
  7. scale — size or range
  8. press — to push
  9. press — a publisher
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. cue — a hint
  13. band — a ring
  14. tube — the underground
  15. race — humankind
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. staff — employees
  18. press — newspapers
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. staff — a stick
  21. cue — a signal
  22. tube — a container
  23. scale — in music
  24. race — the arms race

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