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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.

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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: bass · mouse · scale · cell · press · branch · game · object

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. object — to protest
  3. scale — size or range
  4. branch — a division
  5. game — a match
  6. bass — low music
  7. cell — a phone
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. bass — the fish
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. scale — in music
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. press — to push
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. object — a thing
  18. game — wild animals
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. press — a publisher
  21. object — an aim
  22. cell — in biology
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. press — newspapers

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