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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. press — to push
  4. snap — to click
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. press — a publisher
  7. net — after costs
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. net — in sport
  10. spell — a short time
  11. spell — magic
  12. bear — the animal
  13. spell — letters
  14. net — for catching
  15. bass — the fish
  16. press — newspapers
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bass — the instrument

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