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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. press — a publisher
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. clip — for paper
  5. press — to push
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. ground — a position
  10. clip — to cut
  11. stem — to come from
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. press — newspapers
  15. clip — a video
  16. saw — the tool
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. ground — the earth
  19. ground — crushed
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. saw — the tool
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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