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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. scale — size or range
  4. press — a publisher
  5. rock — a stone
  6. spring — a coil
  7. press — newspapers
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. board — to get on
  10. game — wild animals
  11. game — a match
  12. spring — of water
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. press — to push
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. board — a committee
  19. scale — in music
  20. dip — to sink
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. spring — the season
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. racket — for tennis

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