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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 120 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 · chip · straw · wake · game · fall · rule · track

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. press — to push
  3. fall — to drop
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. press — a publisher
  6. rule — government
  7. fall — the season
  8. chip — to eat
  9. track — to keep track
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. rule — a law
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. chip — for betting
  16. fall — to drop
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. press — newspapers
  19. game — wild animals
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. game — a match
  22. wake — a trail
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. track — a path

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