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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bass — the fish
  6. press — newspapers
  7. plane — a tool
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. ground — the earth
  11. bass — low music
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spring — of water
  15. ground — a position
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. scale — size or range
  18. scale — in music
  19. spring — the season
  20. cold — an illness
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. ground — crushed
  23. press — a publisher
  24. press — to push

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