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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. clip — to cut
  3. press — to push
  4. perch — the fish
  5. staff — employees
  6. clip — for paper
  7. press — a publisher
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. clip — a video
  11. rest — what's left
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. roll — a cake
  14. ground — the earth
  15. press — newspapers
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. ground — a position
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. ground — crushed
  20. roll — a list
  21. staff — employees
  22. rest — a break
  23. rest — what's left
  24. roll — on a roll

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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