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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. press — a publisher
  3. swing — in golf
  4. press — to push
  5. bass — low music
  6. swing — music
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. saw — the tool
  10. fall — the season
  11. fine — high quality
  12. swing — to play on
  13. fall — to drop
  14. press — newspapers
  15. land — a country
  16. saw — the tool
  17. bass — the fish
  18. land — ground
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. land — to come down
  22. fall — to drop
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. pitch — completely

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