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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  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. press — to push
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. ball — a great time
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. present — the time now
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. race — humankind
  10. pop — soda
  11. press — newspapers
  12. chair — a leader
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. pop — to visit
  15. ball — a dance
  16. press — a publisher
  17. present — there
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. race — a contest
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. present — a gift
  23. pop — 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