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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. bass — low music
  3. chip — to eat
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. chip — for betting
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. club — a group
  8. press — to push
  9. season — in sport
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. scale — size or range
  13. scale — in music
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. spell — letters
  16. club — for golf
  17. press — a publisher
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. bass — the fish
  20. spell — magic
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. spell — a short time
  23. club — for dancing
  24. press — newspapers

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