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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. chip — for betting
  3. net — for catching
  4. chair — a leader
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. band — a music group
  7. band — a ring
  8. scale — in music
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. chip — to eat
  12. current — happening now
  13. press — a publisher
  14. current — electric
  15. press — newspapers
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. last — to go on
  18. scale — size or range
  19. last — final
  20. last — finally
  21. net — in sport
  22. net — after costs
  23. current — of water
  24. chair — to sit on

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