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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. cell — in biology
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. clip — for paper
  8. press — a publisher
  9. bear — the animal
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. bear — the animal
  13. cell — a phone
  14. game — a match
  15. saw — the tool
  16. game — wild animals
  17. press — to push
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. clip — a video
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. clip — to cut
  24. press — newspapers

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