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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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. season — in sport
  3. press — newspapers
  4. bank — of a river
  5. cue — a hint
  6. chest — of your body
  7. cue — for pool
  8. press — to push
  9. bank — for money
  10. spring — the season
  11. spring — of water
  12. clip — to cut
  13. bank — for money
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. clip — a video
  16. chest — a box
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. clip — for paper
  19. spring — a coil
  20. season — of the year
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. cue — a signal
  24. chest — of your body

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