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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. game — wild animals
  3. kick — in football
  4. clip — for paper
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. clip — a video
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. bank — for money
  10. bank — of a river
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. file — a line of people
  13. pass — a permit
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. press — newspapers
  16. clip — to cut
  17. file — a tool
  18. game — a match
  19. press — a publisher
  20. bank — for money
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. press — to push
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. file — a document

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