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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. band — a ring
  4. lie — to recline
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. press — newspapers
  13. game — wild animals
  14. season — of the year
  15. spring — a coil
  16. game — a match
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. spring — of water
  19. press — to push
  20. band — a music group
  21. spring — the season
  22. season — in sport
  23. press — a publisher
  24. straw — a straw man

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