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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: press · chest · snap · cap · staff · bass · track · fork

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. cap — a lid
  3. snap — to click
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. fork — in a road
  6. cap — of ice
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — a box
  9. bass — the fish
  10. track — a path
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. staff — employees
  13. track — a song
  14. staff — employees
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. staff — a stick
  17. press — a publisher
  18. chest — of your body
  19. cap — a hat
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. press — to push
  22. press — newspapers
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. track — to keep track

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