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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. clip — for paper
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. clip — a video
  5. net — after costs
  6. rush — hurry
  7. clip — to cut
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. craft — a skill
  10. face — to confront
  11. press — a publisher
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. field — a subject
  14. field — farmland
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. net — in sport
  17. press — to push
  18. press — newspapers
  19. craft — boats
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. net — for catching
  22. face — part of the head
  23. face — to point toward
  24. rush — to hurry

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