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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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Word bank
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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 function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. net — after costs
  4. press — to push
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. press — a publisher
  9. snap — to click
  10. net — in sport
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. fork — in a road
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. net — for catching
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. temple — a place of worship

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