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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. degree — from a university
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. press — to push
  6. chest — of your body
  7. chip — to eat
  8. chip — for betting
  9. object — a thing
  10. object — to protest
  11. press — a publisher
  12. degree — an amount
  13. saw — the tool
  14. degree — temperature
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. race — humankind
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. saw — the tool
  19. object — an aim
  20. race — the arms race
  21. chest — of your body
  22. race — a contest
  23. chest — a box
  24. press — newspapers

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