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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  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. fine — a penalty
  2. press — to push
  3. fine — high quality
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. cell — in biology
  8. swing — music
  9. clip — to cut
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. fine — all right
  12. swing — to play on
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. press — a publisher
  15. swing — in golf
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. press — newspapers
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. cell — a phone
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. clip — a video
  23. cell — in a prison
  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