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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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  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. ruler — a monarch
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. march — the month
  4. press — a publisher
  5. game — a match
  6. last — to go on
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. last — finally
  9. march — the month
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. bass — the fish
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. bass — low music
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. court — of a king
  16. press — to push
  17. court — for sport
  18. game — wild animals
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. court — of law
  21. march — music
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. last — final
  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