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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 120 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 play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. press — a publisher
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. bass — low music
  7. chest — of your body
  8. drill — a practice
  9. drill — the tool
  10. chest — a box
  11. deal — to handle
  12. clip — a video
  13. chip — to eat
  14. drill — army training
  15. chest — of your body
  16. clip — to cut
  17. press — to push
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. bass — the fish
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. clip — for paper
  22. chair — a leader
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. chip — for betting

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