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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: chair · game · mouse · rash · net · press · date · bulb

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. date — the fruit
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. net — in sport
  8. rash — a series
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. net — for catching
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. rash — hasty
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. press — newspapers
  16. bulb — for light
  17. press — a publisher
  18. chair — a leader
  19. bulb — for light
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. press — to push
  23. net — after costs
  24. game — a match

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