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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 116 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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. press — a publisher
  3. press — to push
  4. plane — a tool
  5. pitch — completely
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. shower — to wash
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. clip — for paper
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. clip — to cut
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. shower — rain
  15. press — newspapers
  16. bound — certain
  17. bound — obliged
  18. clip — a video

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