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

  1. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. tube — a container
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. bass — low music
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cap — a hat
  7. tube — the underground
  8. press — a publisher
  9. bass — the fish
  10. cell — in biology
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. charge — in control
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. tear — to rip
  15. charge — electricity
  16. press — to push
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. cap — of ice
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. tear — from crying
  23. charge — a price
  24. cap — a lid

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