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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 120 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: season · scale · fan · snap · press · ball · cue · mine

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. season — of the year
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. cue — a hint
  6. cue — for pool
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. cue — a signal
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. press — to push
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. ball — a dance
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. season — in sport
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. ball — a great time
  20. snap — to click
  21. scale — size or range
  22. scale — in music
  23. press — newspapers
  24. press — a publisher

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