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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
468
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: mate · press · pitch · face · fall · bass · scale · chair

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. scale — in music
  3. mate — a partner
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. press — to push
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. pitch — completely
  9. bass — the fish
  10. press — a publisher
  11. face — part of the head
  12. chair — a leader
  13. face — to confront
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. scale — size or range
  16. mate — a friend
  17. fall — the season
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. press — newspapers
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. fall — to drop
  22. bass — low music
  23. mate — to breed
  24. fall — to drop

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