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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. snap — to click
  3. press — newspapers
  4. club — for golf
  5. net — after costs
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. pop — soda
  9. press — a publisher
  10. club — a group
  11. face — to confront
  12. press — to push
  13. board — a committee
  14. net — for catching
  15. face — part of the head
  16. face — to point toward
  17. board — to get on
  18. pop — to visit
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. net — in sport
  21. pop — music
  22. clip — a video
  23. club — for dancing
  24. clip — for paper

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