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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. clip — a video
  5. fall — to drop
  6. cue — a signal
  7. club — for dancing
  8. row — to paddle
  9. mine — for digging
  10. fall — the season
  11. cue — for pool
  12. club — for golf
  13. club — a group
  14. press — to push
  15. press — newspapers
  16. clip — for paper
  17. cue — a hint
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. fall — to drop
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. row — a line
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. press — a publisher

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