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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: bay · race · straw · band · lie · press · toast · degree

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. press — to push
  3. lie — to recline
  4. race — a contest
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. toast — bread
  9. race — humankind
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. band — a ring
  13. press — newspapers
  14. band — a music group
  15. race — the arms race
  16. degree — from a university
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. degree — an amount
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. degree — temperature
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. press — a publisher
  24. straw — a straw man

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