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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. chair — a leader
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. clip — to cut
  7. board — a committee
  8. press — a publisher
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. drill — the tool
  11. drill — army training
  12. clip — for paper
  13. pop — to visit
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. drill — a practice
  16. rock — a stone
  17. snap — to click
  18. rock — music
  19. press — newspapers
  20. board — to get on
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. pop — music
  23. clip — a video
  24. pop — soda

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