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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  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. bear — to put up with
  2. press — to push
  3. clip — to cut
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. capital — money
  7. current — of water
  8. press — a publisher
  9. current — happening now
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bear — the animal
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. capital — a city
  15. saw — the tool
  16. current — electric
  17. clip — a video
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. press — newspapers
  23. bear — the animal
  24. clip — for paper

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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