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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: race · cue · cell · wake · straw · jam · nail · press

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. cue — a hint
  3. race — the arms race
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. press — to push
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. press — newspapers
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. cue — a signal
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. press — a publisher
  19. race — humankind
  20. cue — for pool
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. race — a contest
  23. cell — in biology
  24. wake — a trail

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