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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. bass — the fish
  3. net — in sport
  4. firm — a company
  5. firm — steady
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. object — an aim
  8. press — a publisher
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. object — to protest
  11. squash — to crush
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. rest — what's left
  14. object — a thing
  15. firm — decided
  16. net — after costs
  17. net — for catching
  18. press — newspapers
  19. rest — a break
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. bass — low music
  22. squash — the sport
  23. rest — what's left
  24. bass — the instrument

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