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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. press — to push
  3. row — to paddle
  4. can — a tin
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. file — a tool
  7. can — to be able to
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. can — a tin
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. row — a line
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. bass — the fish
  15. press — newspapers
  16. file — a line of people
  17. bass — low music
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. file — a document
  21. press — a publisher
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. dip — to sink

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