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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 fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. rock — a stone
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. vault — a safe
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. cold — an illness
  7. bark — to shout
  8. press — newspapers
  9. rock — music
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. ground — a position
  12. bass — low music
  13. ground — crushed
  14. press — to push
  15. cold — not warm
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. press — a publisher
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. dip — to sink
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. ground — the earth
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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