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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. pound — a weight
  3. press — a publisher
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. last — to go on
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. bass — low music
  8. game — wild animals
  9. file — a document
  10. file — a tool
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. game — a match
  13. last — finally
  14. last — final
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. press — to push
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. press — newspapers
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. file — a line of people

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