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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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Word bank
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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: wind · press · bay · mouse · mate · clip

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. wind — moving air
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — for paper
  5. mate — to breed
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. press — a publisher
  8. mate — a partner
  9. press — to push
  10. press — newspapers
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. clip — a video
  18. mate — a friend

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