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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. club — for dancing
  3. track — a song
  4. bulb — for light
  5. press — a publisher
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. wind — moving air
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. bulb — for light
  10. object — to protest
  11. club — for golf
  12. chest — a box
  13. track — to keep track
  14. object — a thing
  15. press — newspapers
  16. track — a path
  17. club — a group
  18. scale — size or range
  19. object — an aim
  20. press — to push
  21. chest — of your body
  22. scale — in music
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. wind — moving air

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