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

Word bank: suit · rest · chest · press · straw · cap

  1. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. cap — a hat
  3. suit — in cards
  4. rest — what's left
  5. chest — a box
  6. cap — a lid
  7. press — a publisher
  8. suit — to fit
  9. rest — a break
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. rest — what's left
  12. chest — of your body
  13. cap — of ice
  14. chest — of your body
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. press — newspapers
  18. press — to push

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