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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: trunk · patient · net · land · press · ruler · board · clip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. net — after costs
  3. net — in sport
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. press — newspapers
  7. land — a country
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. board — to get on
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. clip — for paper
  13. press — to push
  14. land — to come down
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. press — a publisher
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. land — ground
  20. net — for catching
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. board — a committee
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. clip — a video

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