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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.

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: mug · pitch · press · mine · bass · straw · capital · coach

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. press — a publisher
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. mug — to rob
  7. press — newspapers
  8. bass — the fish
  9. mug — a face
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mug — a cup
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. capital — a city
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. capital — money
  18. pitch — completely
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. press — to push
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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