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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: hand · clip · ground · calf · fine · rush · press · coach

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. ground — the earth
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. hand — help
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. hand — in cards
  7. press — to push
  8. clip — a video
  9. ground — a position
  10. clip — for paper
  11. press — a publisher
  12. fine — high quality
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. ground — crushed
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. fine — all right
  19. press — newspapers
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. clip — to cut
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. rush — hurry
  24. calf — a young animal

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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