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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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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 · pit · fan · game · craft · press · net · chest

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. press — a publisher
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bass — low music
  5. chest — of your body
  6. craft — boats
  7. pit — in a race
  8. net — for catching
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. press — newspapers
  11. pit — a hole
  12. net — after costs
  13. bass — the fish
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. craft — a skill
  16. game — wild animals
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. game — a match
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. net — in sport
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. press — to push

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