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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 116 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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. press — newspapers
  4. clip — for paper
  5. clip — to cut
  6. prune — to trim
  7. field — for sport
  8. rash — hasty
  9. wake — a trail
  10. field — a subject
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. press — a publisher
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. press — to push
  16. ball — a dance
  17. prune — to trim
  18. ball — a great time
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. clip — a video
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. field — farmland
  24. stick — a piece of wood

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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