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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — for paper
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. fork — in a road
  5. press — to push
  6. clip — a video
  7. face — to point toward
  8. net — for catching
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. press — a publisher
  12. face — part of the head
  13. face — to confront
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. rule — a law
  18. net — after costs
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. net — in sport
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. snap — to click
  23. press — newspapers
  24. rule — government

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