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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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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: craft · press · spell · march · clip · pop · bat · straw

  1. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. press — a publisher
  3. spell — magic
  4. bat — the animal
  5. press — to push
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. pop — music
  8. clip — a video
  9. spell — a short time
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. spell — letters
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. craft — a skill
  14. craft — boats
  15. pop — soda
  16. march — music
  17. march — the month
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. march — the month
  20. pop — to visit
  21. clip — for paper
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. clip — to cut

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