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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — a country
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. stand — to bear
  5. rash — a series
  6. club — for dancing
  7. bass — low music
  8. land — to come down
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. band — a ring
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. field — farmland
  13. press — newspapers
  14. rash — hasty
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. club — for golf
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. club — a group
  19. press — a publisher
  20. bass — the fish
  21. field — a subject
  22. field — for sport
  23. band — a music group
  24. 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