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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. season — in sport
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. press — a publisher
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. clip — a video
  9. snap — to click
  10. dip — to sink
  11. press — to push
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. cap — a hat
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. cap — of ice
  16. cap — a lid
  17. press — newspapers
  18. clip — for paper
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. season — of the year
  23. sharp — clever
  24. sharp — with an edge

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