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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 116 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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. net — after costs
  3. spell — magic
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. spell — letters
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. tear — from crying
  9. net — for catching
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. press — newspapers
  12. net — in sport
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. wake — a trail
  15. press — a publisher
  16. scale — size or range
  17. tear — from crying
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bass — low music
  20. spell — a short time
  21. scale — in music
  22. perch — the fish
  23. bass — the fish
  24. press — to push

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