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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: press · tear · chair · stick · content · bass · fan · suit

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. chair — a leader
  3. press — to push
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. content — happy
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — to rip
  8. content — the amount
  9. press — newspapers
  10. suit — clothes
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bass — low music
  14. suit — to fit
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. suit — in cards
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. bass — the fish
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. tear — from crying
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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