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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 120 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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. club — for golf
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. club — a group
  6. press — a publisher
  7. lie — to recline
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. club — for dancing
  10. current — happening now
  11. cue — a hint
  12. press — newspapers
  13. current — of water
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. press — to push
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. bark — to shout
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. cue — for pool
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. current — electric

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