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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: leaves · game · mine · face · wound · press · toast · straw

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. wound — an injury
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. press — to push
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. press — a publisher
  7. game — a match
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. face — to point toward
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. face — to confront
  13. face — part of the head
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. wound — an injury
  17. toast — bread
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. game — wild animals
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. mine — for digging
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. press — newspapers

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