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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. press — to push
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. snap — to click
  8. game — wild animals
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. game — a match
  13. press — a publisher
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. press — newspapers
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. mine — for digging
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. toast — bread

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