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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: bat · bound · pass · firm · straw · press · row · mug

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. bound — obliged
  3. press — a publisher
  4. press — newspapers
  5. row — a line
  6. bound — certain
  7. press — to push
  8. mug — to rob
  9. mug — a cup
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. firm — steady
  17. bound — tied together
  18. pass — a permit
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. firm — a company
  23. mug — a face
  24. row — to paddle

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