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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 120 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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. spring — of water
  3. swing — in golf
  4. press — a publisher
  5. bass — the fish
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. staff — a stick
  8. swing — music
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. spring — a coil
  12. court — of law
  13. fine — high quality
  14. court — of a king
  15. press — newspapers
  16. game — a match
  17. spring — the season
  18. court — for sport
  19. swing — to play on
  20. fine — all right
  21. bass — low music
  22. staff — employees
  23. staff — employees
  24. press — to push

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