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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: swing · hand · spring · press · game · bay · tube · bass

  1. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. swing — to play on
  3. hand — help
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. swing — music
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — of water
  8. press — newspapers
  9. game — wild animals
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bass — low music
  12. press — to push
  13. spring — the season
  14. game — a match
  15. tube — the underground
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. hand — in cards
  19. tube — a container
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. press — a publisher
  23. bass — the fish
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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