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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: press · straw · current · toast · mine · swing · chair · drill

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. chair — a leader
  4. current — electric
  5. drill — army training
  6. drill — the tool
  7. drill — a practice
  8. current — of water
  9. mine — for digging
  10. toast — bread
  11. current — happening now
  12. press — a publisher
  13. press — to push
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. swing — to play on
  18. swing — music
  19. swing — in golf
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. press — newspapers
  24. straw — a straw man

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