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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. march — music
  3. swing — music
  4. firm — decided
  5. firm — steady
  6. track — a song
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. track — a path
  9. press — to push
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. swing — to play on
  12. season — of the year
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. press — newspapers
  15. hand — help
  16. shower — rain
  17. hand — in cards
  18. march — the month
  19. swing — in golf
  20. track — to keep track
  21. shower — to wash
  22. march — the month
  23. press — a publisher
  24. firm — a company

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