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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: ground · bass · tube · saw · press · net · present · drill

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. ground — a position
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. ground — crushed
  6. tube — the underground
  7. drill — a practice
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. ground — the earth
  10. present — there
  11. net — in sport
  12. press — a publisher
  13. press — newspapers
  14. net — after costs
  15. press — to push
  16. saw — the tool
  17. bass — the fish
  18. present — a gift
  19. saw — the tool
  20. drill — army training
  21. tube — a container
  22. net — for catching
  23. present — the time now
  24. drill — the tool

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