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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  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. rash — hasty
  2. press — newspapers
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. chest — of your body
  5. squash — to crush
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. scale — in music
  12. press — to push
  13. stem — to come from
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. scale — size or range
  17. chest — of your body
  18. rash — a series
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. chest — a box
  21. squash — the sport
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. rash — on the skin
  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