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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 116 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. press — a publisher
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. cap — of ice
  6. ground — crushed
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. ground — the earth
  9. dip — to sink
  10. ground — a position
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. press — newspapers
  13. land — a country
  14. clip — to cut
  15. clip — for paper
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. clip — a video
  18. cap — a lid
  19. present — a gift
  20. press — to push
  21. land — to come down
  22. cap — a hat
  23. land — ground
  24. present — the time now

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