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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: wind · bass · track · arm · kid · press · board · rest

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. board — a committee
  4. press — a publisher
  5. rest — what's left
  6. press — to push
  7. press — newspapers
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. board — to get on
  11. track — to keep track
  12. wind — moving air
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. kid — child
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. bass — the fish
  18. track — a song
  19. wind — moving air
  20. rest — a break
  21. rest — what's left
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. kid — to tease
  24. track — a path

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