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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. press — a publisher
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. race — humankind
  5. band — a music group
  6. clip — a video
  7. race — a contest
  8. firm — decided
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. pop — to visit
  11. press — to push
  12. clip — for paper
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. press — newspapers
  15. tube — the underground
  16. race — the arms race
  17. date — the fruit
  18. pop — soda
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. firm — steady
  21. band — a ring
  22. clip — to cut
  23. firm — a company
  24. tube — a container

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