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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. present — a gift
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. drill — a practice
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. key — the most important part
  9. clip — for paper
  10. present — the time now
  11. clip — to cut
  12. fork — in a road
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. press — a publisher
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. present — there
  17. key — for a lock
  18. drill — the tool
  19. press — newspapers
  20. press — to push
  21. clip — a video
  22. key — in music
  23. drill — army training
  24. leaves — of a tree

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