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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. spring — the season
  3. current — electric
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. cue — for pool
  6. current — happening now
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. clip — a video
  9. press — a publisher
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. press — newspapers
  12. rash — hasty
  13. cue — a hint
  14. rash — a series
  15. deal — to handle
  16. last — finally
  17. press — to push
  18. spring — of water
  19. last — to go on
  20. last — final
  21. cue — a signal
  22. clip — for paper
  23. spring — a coil
  24. current — of water

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