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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 · can · wake · straw · rock · hand · leaves · degree

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. rock — music
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. press — a publisher
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. can — a tin
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. wake — a trail
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. hand — help
  11. press — newspapers
  12. degree — from a university
  13. can — a tin
  14. degree — an amount
  15. degree — temperature
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. hand — in cards
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. press — to push
  22. can — to be able to
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. rock — a stone

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