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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: press · pass · clip · bowl · chest · kick

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. chest — of your body
  3. press — to push
  4. pass — a permit
  5. press — newspapers
  6. clip — to cut
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. clip — for paper
  9. clip — a video
  10. chest — a box
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. press — a publisher
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. kick — in football
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. chest — of your body

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