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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. press — to push
  3. bass — low music
  4. bass — the fish
  5. club — for dancing
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. press — newspapers
  8. club — for golf
  9. ball — a dance
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. rule — government
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. shower — to wash
  16. clip — for paper
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. club — a group
  20. ball — a great time
  21. press — a publisher
  22. clip — a video
  23. rule — a law
  24. clip — to cut

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