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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. present — the time now
  6. present — a gift
  7. wound — an injury
  8. file — a line of people
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. file — a tool
  11. ball — a dance
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. file — a document
  15. ball — a great time
  16. press — to push
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. bass — low music
  19. press — newspapers
  20. bass — the fish
  21. content — happy
  22. content — the amount
  23. wound — an injury
  24. present — there

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