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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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. press — to push
  3. wound — an injury
  4. face — part of the head
  5. press — a publisher
  6. swing — music
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. swing — to play on
  9. clip — for paper
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. bass — the fish
  13. bass — low music
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. clip — to cut
  16. face — to confront
  17. wound — an injury
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. swing — in golf
  20. lie — to recline
  21. press — newspapers
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. clip — a video
  24. face — to point toward

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