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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 116 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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. degree — an amount
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. clip — to cut
  7. rest — what's left
  8. degree — temperature
  9. degree — from a university
  10. drill — the tool
  11. clip — for paper
  12. clip — a video
  13. drill — army training
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. drill — a practice
  17. rest — what's left
  18. press — newspapers
  19. rest — a break
  20. scale — in music
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. scale — size or range
  24. press — to push

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