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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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Word bank
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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 water is too ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. bass — the fish
  3. cold — an illness
  4. ground — the earth
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. staff — employees
  8. ground — a position
  9. press — newspapers
  10. bass — low music
  11. press — a publisher
  12. plane — a tool
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. press — to push
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. race — a contest
  17. race — humankind
  18. staff — a stick
  19. ground — crushed
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. race — the arms race
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. staff — employees
  24. bass — the instrument

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