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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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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 · jam · club · swing · chest · bank · cell · lie

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. cell — a phone
  3. club — for golf
  4. swing — music
  5. club — for dancing
  6. press — newspapers
  7. press — a publisher
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. cell — in biology
  12. swing — in golf
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. bank — of a river
  15. chest — of your body
  16. bank — for money
  17. club — a group
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. chest — of your body
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. lie — to recline
  22. bank — for money
  23. swing — to play on
  24. chest — a box

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