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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: press · race · pit · clip · bear · cap

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. 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. cap — a lid
  2. race — the arms race
  3. pit — in a race
  4. press — a publisher
  5. cap — a hat
  6. race — humankind
  7. cap — of ice
  8. press — to push
  9. press — newspapers
  10. clip — for paper
  11. bear — the animal
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. clip — to cut
  14. race — a contest
  15. pit — a hole
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. 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