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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: cabinet · land · press · mouse · firm · squash · chair · bass

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. land — to come down
  4. bass — low music
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. firm — steady
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. press — a publisher
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. firm — decided
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. land — a country
  14. land — ground
  15. chair — a leader
  16. bass — the fish
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. press — newspapers
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. squash — to crush
  22. squash — the sport
  23. press — to push
  24. squash — the vegetable

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