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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: press · straw · rash · pound · chest · snap · cell · roll

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. chest — of your body
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. chest — of your body
  5. rash — hasty
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. pound — a weight
  8. press — a publisher
  9. chest — a box
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. roll — a cake
  14. press — newspapers
  15. rash — a series
  16. cell — in biology
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. cell — a phone
  19. roll — a list
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. snap — to click
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. 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