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

Word bank: bark · drill · current · clip · tear · press

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. 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. clip — to cut
  2. press — a publisher
  3. clip — for paper
  4. tear — to rip
  5. current — electric
  6. tear — from crying
  7. current — of water
  8. bark — to shout
  9. drill — the tool
  10. tear — from crying
  11. drill — a practice
  12. current — happening now
  13. press — to push
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. clip — a video
  17. drill — army training
  18. 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