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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. staff — a stick
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. press — to push
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. season — in sport
  9. season — of the year
  10. press — newspapers
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. clip — a video
  13. press — a publisher
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. pit — a hole
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. content — happy
  19. content — the amount
  20. pit — in a race
  21. staff — employees
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. clip — for paper
  24. staff — employees

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