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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. bass — low music
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. scale — in music
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. club — for dancing
  8. press — to push
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. club — a group
  13. game — wild animals
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. plane — a tool
  16. club — for golf
  17. bass — the fish
  18. press — newspapers
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. branch — a division
  22. game — a match
  23. scale — size or range
  24. press — a publisher

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