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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 116 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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. bass — low music
  3. game — wild animals
  4. deal — to handle
  5. bass — the fish
  6. court — of a king
  7. game — a match
  8. press — to push
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. press — a publisher
  12. court — for sport
  13. press — newspapers
  14. row — to paddle
  15. court — of law
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. row — a line
  18. row — a quarrel

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