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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. court — for sport
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. snap — to click
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. bass — low music
  9. court — of a king
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. bass — the fish
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. press — newspapers
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. swing — to play on
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. court — of law
  22. swing — in golf
  23. press — a publisher
  24. swing — music

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