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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. press — newspapers
  5. prune — to trim
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. staff — employees
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. prune — to trim
  14. staff — employees
  15. press — to push
  16. spring — a coil
  17. staff — a stick
  18. spring — the season
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. cold — an illness
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. spring — of water

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