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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. clip — for paper
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. row — a line
  9. clip — a video
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. stand — to bear
  14. clip — to cut
  15. press — newspapers
  16. press — a publisher
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. club — a group
  19. club — for dancing
  20. sharp — clever
  21. club — for golf
  22. row — to paddle
  23. pitch — completely
  24. fork — in a road

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