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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. bass — the fish
  3. drill — army training
  4. press — to push
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. press — a publisher
  7. drill — the tool
  8. saw — the tool
  9. lean — to bend
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. spell — a short time
  12. drill — a practice
  13. spell — letters
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. lean — thin
  16. bound — obliged
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. hand — help
  19. bound — tied together
  20. press — newspapers
  21. spell — magic
  22. bound — certain
  23. saw — the tool
  24. hand — in cards

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