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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. present — a gift
  3. clip — a video
  4. clip — for paper
  5. present — there
  6. key — for a lock
  7. fork — in a road
  8. key — the most important part
  9. press — a publisher
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. key — in music
  13. press — newspapers
  14. press — to push
  15. clip — to cut
  16. present — the time now
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — to keep secret

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