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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. degree — from a university
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. court — of a king
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. wind — moving air
  8. degree — an amount
  9. wind — moving air
  10. clip — a video
  11. pass — a permit
  12. press — to push
  13. staff — employees
  14. press — newspapers
  15. staff — a stick
  16. clip — for paper
  17. degree — temperature
  18. court — of law
  19. press — a publisher
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. staff — employees
  24. clip — to cut

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