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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. spell — a short time
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. press — newspapers
  7. spell — letters
  8. press — a publisher
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. hand — help
  11. stem — to come from
  12. pit — in a race
  13. kick — in football
  14. clip — to cut
  15. press — to push
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. hand — in cards
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. clip — a video
  21. pit — a hole
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. clip — for paper
  24. kick — a thrill

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