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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 116 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 piece is in a major ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  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. clip — for paper
  2. key — in music
  3. court — of a king
  4. degree — an amount
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. degree — temperature
  7. court — of law
  8. press — to push
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. court — for sport
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. press — newspapers
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. key — for a lock
  18. press — a publisher
  19. board — a committee
  20. board — to get on
  21. degree — from a university
  22. key — the most important part
  23. clip — to cut
  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