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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. press — a publisher
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. hand — help
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. press — newspapers
  11. press — to push
  12. fine — all right
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. chair — a leader
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. hand — in cards
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. kick — in football
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. mouse — the animal

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