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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 fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. saw — the tool
  4. mine — for digging
  5. field — for sport
  6. saw — the tool
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. press — to push
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. press — a publisher
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. field — farmland
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. press — newspapers
  20. field — a subject
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. bass — low music
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. trunk — of a tree

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