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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. perch — the fish
  3. scale — in music
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. press — to push
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. scale — size or range
  16. press — newspapers
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. press — a publisher
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. stand — to bear
  22. branch — a division
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. scale — for weighing

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