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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. cold — not warm
  3. press — a publisher
  4. press — newspapers
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. game — a match
  8. squash — to crush
  9. bass — low music
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. board — to get on
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. squash — the sport
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. game — wild animals
  18. board — a committee
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. scale — in music
  21. scale — size or range
  22. cold — an illness
  23. press — to push
  24. bass — the fish

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