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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. season — in sport
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. pop — to visit
  6. season — of the year
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. squash — the sport
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. pop — soda
  11. land — to come down
  12. pop — music
  13. press — a publisher
  14. bass — low music
  15. bass — the fish
  16. press — newspapers
  17. press — to push
  18. clip — to cut
  19. squash — to crush
  20. land — ground
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. clip — a video
  23. land — a country
  24. clip — for paper

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