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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. clip — a video
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. current — electric
  5. root — of a plant
  6. field — farmland
  7. pitch — completely
  8. clip — for paper
  9. field — for sport
  10. current — happening now
  11. clip — to cut
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. field — a subject
  14. press — newspapers
  15. press — a publisher
  16. net — after costs
  17. net — for catching
  18. root — the cause
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. press — to push
  21. current — of water
  22. root — of a word
  23. net — in sport
  24. dip — to sink

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