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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. press — newspapers
  3. press — a publisher
  4. race — humankind
  5. content — the amount
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. content — happy
  8. degree — temperature
  9. race — a contest
  10. press — to push
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. degree — an amount
  13. mug — a cup
  14. race — the arms race
  15. mug — to rob
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. capital — a city
  18. vault — a safe
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. bass — the fish
  21. capital — money
  22. degree — from a university
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. mug — a face

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