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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. land — to come down
  4. land — a country
  5. roll — a cake
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. pass — a permit
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. saw — the tool
  11. track — to keep track
  12. track — a path
  13. track — a song
  14. clip — for paper
  15. press — a publisher
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. clip — to cut
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. land — ground
  20. saw — the tool
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. press — newspapers
  23. press — to push
  24. clip — a video

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