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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. fine — all right
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. press — a publisher
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. wound — an injury
  7. press — newspapers
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. clip — to cut
  11. kick — in football
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bark — to shout
  14. clip — a video
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. clip — for paper
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. stand — to bear
  22. fine — high quality
  23. press — to push
  24. stand — on your feet

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