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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. clip — for paper
  3. press — a publisher
  4. clip — a video
  5. rock — music
  6. prune — to trim
  7. press — to push
  8. key — in music
  9. prune — to trim
  10. season — of the year
  11. ground — crushed
  12. key — for a lock
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. rock — a stone
  15. season — in sport
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. ground — a position
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. ground — the earth
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. pound — a weight
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. press — newspapers
  24. clip — to cut

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