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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. march — music
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. press — to push
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. firm — a company
  10. march — the month
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. lean — thin
  13. firm — decided
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — to drop
  17. lean — to bend
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. press — newspapers
  21. march — the month
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. fall — the season
  24. press — a publisher

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