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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 function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. clip — a video
  3. field — for sport
  4. firm — steady
  5. present — a gift
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. present — the time now
  8. prune — to trim
  9. firm — a company
  10. prune — to trim
  11. file — a tool
  12. file — a line of people
  13. firm — decided
  14. clip — to cut
  15. press — to push
  16. snap — to click
  17. present — there
  18. field — farmland
  19. press — a publisher
  20. file — a document
  21. clip — for paper
  22. field — a subject
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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