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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. ball — a dance
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. mate — a partner
  7. press — to push
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. kick — in football
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. mate — a friend
  12. ball — a great time
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. press — a publisher
  15. mate — to breed
  16. press — newspapers
  17. wake — a trail
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. clip — to cut
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. sharp — clever
  23. clip — a video
  24. cabinet — ministers

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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