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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. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. club — for dancing
  3. fine — all right
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. clip — to cut
  6. foot — a measure
  7. last — to go on
  8. mine — for digging
  9. last — final
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. last — finally
  13. club — a group
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. fine — high quality
  16. press — to push
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. club — for golf
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. dip — to sink
  21. clip — a video
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. press — a publisher
  24. clip — for paper

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