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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. squash — to crush
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. scale — size or range
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. clip — a video
  9. press — newspapers
  10. stem — to come from
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. press — a publisher
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. spell — a short time
  15. scale — in music
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. squash — the sport
  21. clip — to cut
  22. clip — for paper
  23. spell — magic
  24. spell — letters

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