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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. row — a line
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. race — the arms race
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. press — to push
  8. race — a contest
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. press — newspapers
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. face — part of the head
  13. lean — to bend
  14. clip — for paper
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. lean — thin
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. clip — a video
  19. clip — to cut
  20. race — humankind
  21. face — to confront
  22. face — to point toward
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. row — to paddle

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