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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 120 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 captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. press — a publisher
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. track — a path
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. track — a song
  8. clip — a video
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. clip — for paper
  11. staff — employees
  12. staff — a stick
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. press — to push
  15. vault — a safe
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. board — a committee
  19. press — newspapers
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. staff — employees
  22. clip — to cut
  23. track — to keep track
  24. calf — of the leg

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