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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  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. kid — child
  2. wound — an injury
  3. track — to keep track
  4. press — to push
  5. bass — the fish
  6. suit — clothes
  7. court — of a king
  8. track — a path
  9. track — a song
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. squash — to crush
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. suit — to fit
  14. court — for sport
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. squash — the sport
  17. wound — an injury
  18. kid — to tease
  19. press — a publisher
  20. bass — low music
  21. court — of law
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. suit — in cards
  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