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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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. rock — music
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. pop — music
  7. rest — what's left
  8. pop — soda
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. chest — a box
  12. band — a ring
  13. rest — what's left
  14. pop — to visit
  15. press — to push
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. chest — of your body
  18. press — newspapers
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. rock — a stone
  22. band — a music group
  23. press — a publisher
  24. rest — a break

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