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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: court · bulb · dip · cell · clip · lash · press · sharp

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. 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. press — a publisher
  2. bulb — for light
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. court — for sport
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. cell — a phone
  10. court — of law
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. clip — to cut
  14. sharp — clever
  15. cell — in biology
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. clip — for paper
  18. dip — to sink
  19. bulb — for light
  20. clip — a video
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. court — of a king
  23. press — to push
  24. 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