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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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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: net · game · press · snap · bass · date · bound · fan

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. net — after costs
  5. net — in sport
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. press — a publisher
  9. bass — the fish
  10. date — the fruit
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. snap — to click
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. net — for catching
  15. game — a match
  16. bass — low music
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bound — certain
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. press — newspapers
  22. press — to push
  23. bound — obliged
  24. bass — the instrument

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