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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. fine — all right
  3. field — for sport
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. rule — a law
  6. press — to push
  7. club — for golf
  8. press — newspapers
  9. press — a publisher
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. rule — government
  12. field — a subject
  13. clip — a video
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. clip — for paper
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. club — for dancing
  19. field — farmland
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. clip — to cut
  23. fine — high quality
  24. mouse — the animal

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