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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: file · branch · straw · press · club · present

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. file — a tool
  3. file — a document
  4. club — for golf
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. present — the time now
  7. press — a publisher
  8. present — there
  9. club — a group
  10. branch — a division
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. club — for dancing
  13. press — newspapers
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. file — a line of people
  16. press — to push
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. present — a gift

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