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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. clip — to cut
  3. cell — a phone
  4. chest — of your body
  5. press — a publisher
  6. press — newspapers
  7. craft — boats
  8. chest — a box
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. present — a gift
  11. chest — of your body
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. present — the time now
  14. press — to push
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. craft — a skill
  17. cell — in biology
  18. clip — a video
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. clip — for paper
  23. bore — to tire
  24. present — there

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