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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. press — to push
  4. march — the month
  5. press — newspapers
  6. chest — of your body
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. chest — of your body
  9. object — an aim
  10. can — to be able to
  11. march — the month
  12. can — a tin
  13. can — a tin
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. march — music
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. chest — a box
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. press — a publisher
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. object — to protest
  22. bass — the fish
  23. object — a thing
  24. straw — a straw man

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