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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. press — newspapers
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. field — farmland
  5. field — a subject
  6. drill — a practice
  7. press — to push
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. file — a document
  11. drill — the tool
  12. bark — to shout
  13. drill — army training
  14. file — a tool
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. press — a publisher
  17. clip — a video
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. clip — to cut
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. field — for sport
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. file — a line of people
  24. clip — for paper

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