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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 120 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. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. ground — a position
  3. ground — crushed
  4. band — a ring
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. foot — a measure
  8. plane — a tool
  9. chair — a leader
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. ground — the earth
  12. press — a publisher
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. band — a music group
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. scale — size or range
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. content — happy
  20. press — newspapers
  21. content — the amount
  22. scale — in music
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. foot — the bottom

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