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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 116 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: staff · stick · race · key · press · straw

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. key — for a lock
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. press — a publisher
  7. race — a contest
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. key — in music
  10. press — newspapers
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. staff — employees
  13. press — to push
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. key — the most important part
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — humankind
  18. staff — a stick

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