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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. kid — to tease
  6. cell — a phone
  7. season — in sport
  8. perch — the fish
  9. cell — in biology
  10. clip — to cut
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. season — of the year
  15. press — to push
  16. kid — child
  17. clip — a video
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. press — a publisher
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. press — newspapers
  22. clip — for paper
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. perch — for a bird

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