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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: wake · press · coach · straw · ground · current · spell · drill

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. spell — a short time
  4. ground — the earth
  5. spell — letters
  6. drill — a practice
  7. spell — magic
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. ground — crushed
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. current — electric
  14. current — of water
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. drill — army training
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. press — to push
  20. ground — a position
  21. drill — the tool
  22. press — newspapers
  23. wake — a trail
  24. current — happening now

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