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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: content · march · press · club · chair · plane

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. club — a group
  3. press — to push
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. press — a publisher
  6. club — for dancing
  7. march — music
  8. club — for golf
  9. chair — a leader
  10. content — the amount
  11. march — the month
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. content — happy
  14. march — the month
  15. press — newspapers
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. plane — a tool

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