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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. land — a country
  3. land — ground
  4. spell — a short time
  5. vault — a safe
  6. season — of the year
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. can — a tin
  9. press — to push
  10. clip — a video
  11. season — in sport
  12. can — to be able to
  13. clip — to cut
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. land — to come down
  17. press — newspapers
  18. spell — magic
  19. press — a publisher
  20. spell — letters
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. clip — for paper
  24. mouse — the animal

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