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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 116 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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. press — a publisher
  4. scale — in music
  5. press — to push
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. scale — size or range
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. fall — the season
  13. wake — a trail
  14. stand — to bear
  15. press — newspapers
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. fall — to drop
  18. rash — a series
  19. fall — to drop
  20. chair — a leader
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. rash — on the skin

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