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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. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to spend time
  2. last — to go on
  3. press — a publisher
  4. spell — letters
  5. press — to push
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. last — final
  8. fine — all right
  9. last — finally
  10. clip — for paper
  11. pass — a permit
  12. kid — to tease
  13. spell — magic
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. chest — of your body
  16. spell — a short time
  17. fine — high quality
  18. chest — a box
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — to cut
  21. kid — child
  22. press — newspapers
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. chest — of your body

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