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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. clip — to cut
  3. press — to push
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. face — part of the head
  7. press — a publisher
  8. pit — in a race
  9. spring — the season
  10. clip — a video
  11. clip — for paper
  12. spring — of water
  13. face — to confront
  14. court — of law
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. face — to point toward
  17. court — of a king
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. spring — a coil
  20. pit — a hole
  21. key — in music
  22. press — newspapers
  23. key — the most important part
  24. key — for a lock

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