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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.

Make a worksheet

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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. staff — employees
  3. staff — employees
  4. bass — low music
  5. file — a line of people
  6. file — a tool
  7. court — of a king
  8. last — finally
  9. bass — the fish
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — final
  12. staff — a stick
  13. press — a publisher
  14. press — newspapers
  15. court — for sport
  16. file — a document
  17. court — of law
  18. press — to push

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