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

Word bank: cell · press · snap · board · firm · march

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. press — a publisher
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. march — music
  5. march — the month
  6. firm — a company
  7. firm — decided
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. board — to get on
  10. cell — in biology
  11. board — a committee
  12. cell — a phone
  13. firm — steady
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. press — newspapers
  17. press — to push
  18. march — the month

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